Edwards County, Illinois · Albion
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With 42% of homes built before 1960 and about 21 hard-freeze nights a year, frozen and split pipes are a leading winter risk in the county.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 11.9 times a year here, most often in March. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Edwards County gets about 11.9 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
In Edwards County, 3.9 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
19% of occupied homes in Edwards County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Illinois county median of 16.5%.
About 75 nights a year here stay at 65°F or warmer, so basements and crawl spaces can grow mold even without a leak.
Local risk profile
Edwards County covers 222 square miles of southeast Illinois, with about 6,075 residents and 3,045 homes. The county seat is Albion, and West Salem, Bone Gap and Browns round out the largest towns. Half the homes here were built before 1970, half after.
57/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Edwards County ranks 26 of 102 Illinois counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Edwards County ranks highest compared with other Illinois counties.
Winters here are on the gentler end for Illinois, and pipes still freeze. In the 2015–2024 record the county logged about 21 nights a year at or below 20°F (87th of 102) and 79 below freezing. Twenty degrees is roughly where uninsulated pipes start to freeze.
Cold snaps are the real risk. The worst in the record lasted 14 days below freezing (ending February 2021), and the low bottomed out near -6°F on December 23, 2022.
The freeze season here runs December to February, with January the coldest. If you travel then, leave the thermostat at 55°F or above and open sink cabinets on outside walls.
Freezing nights typically start around Nov 1 and end around Apr 8.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Illinois. Of roughly 48.7 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 11.9 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 12th of 102. March, June and July see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 3.9 inches, September 9, 2018. The worst three-day stretch dropped 6.4 inches, ending September 9, 2018, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 66 days a year. Each cycle melts and refreezes water at roof edges and in foundation cracks, which is how ice dams and basement seepage get started.
Housing
66% of homes in Edwards County predate 1980, close to the Illinois county median of 65.9%, which ranks 50th of Illinois's 102 counties.
Housing age is mixed: 42% of homes are pre-1960 and 16% are 2000 or newer. Ask any plumber which era your house is from and you'll know which failures to watch for.
20% of homes are manufactured or mobile homes, above the Illinois county median of 5.6%. Their water lines run under the floor behind the skirting, so a torn skirt or failed heat tape freezes them faster than lines in a site-built house.
Beyond water
Edwards County averages 75 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in July. The EPA recommends keeping indoor humidity below 60%, ideally 30 to 50%. Basements can pass 60% on their own in summer, so a dehumidifier matters even without a leak, and anything wet should be dried within 24 to 48 hours.
Mold remediation: what to expectMain heating fuel in Edwards County's occupied homes: 52% utility gas, 29% electric, 14% propane and 5% wood. Wood heat is more common here than in most Illinois counties. Heating equipment is one of the leading causes of home fires nationally, and the NFPA recommends having chimneys and vents inspected every year.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Edwards County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Richland and Wabash get more pipe-freeze nights than Edwards. White County has the oldest housing nearby, with 72% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Edwards | Illinois median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 42% | 38% | 43 of 102 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 66% | 66% | 50 of 102 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 16% | 15% | 36 of 102 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 20% | 5.6% | 4 of 102 |
| Vacant homes | 12% | 11% | 34 of 102 |
| Wood or propane heat | 19% | 17% | 40 of 102 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 21/yr | 35/yr | 87 of 102 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 12/yr | 8.4/yr | 12 of 102 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 66/yr | 81/yr | 93 of 102 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 75/yr | 51/yr | 13 of 102 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Illinois county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Edwards County: freezing from December to February, heavy rain in March, June and July.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 5-year estimates (2020-2024); weather from NOAA nClimGrid-Daily county averages (EpiNOAA), 2015–2024, averaged across the county; county boundaries from Census TIGER. Reviewed 2026-10-21. Methodology