Hancock County, Illinois · Carthage
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Pipes freeze in Hancock County on about 39 nights a year, mostly November to March. Older homes, 46% of the stock here, are most at risk.
Basements flood here mostly in June. Hancock County averages 8.1 days a year with an inch of rain or more.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Hancock County gets about 8.1 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
Roof leaks here come from summer downpours and, with about 75 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
16% of occupied homes in Hancock County heat mainly with wood or propane, close to the Illinois county median of 16.5%.
About 56 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
With 8,938 homes and around 17,281 residents, Hancock County is 794 square miles of western Illinois. The county seat is Carthage, and Hamilton, Warsaw and La Harpe round out the largest towns. The county's median home was built in 1964.
61/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Hancock County ranks 16 of 102 Illinois counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Hancock County ranks highest compared with other Illinois counties.
For frozen pipes, Hancock County is a typical Illinois county, which is still plenty. From 2015–2024 it averaged 39 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 106 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 38th of 102 counties.
On January 31, 2019 the low fell to about -16°F, and in the stretch ending January 2018 the county went 15 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
Most freezing nights fall from November to March, peaking in January. Disconnect garden hoses and shut off outdoor spigots before the first hard frost, and keep the heat at 55°F or higher if you'll be away.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Oct 31 and the last spring freeze around Apr 14.
Rainfall is about average for Illinois. The county gets about 37.9 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 8.1 days of an inch or more (57th of 102). Those downpours cluster in June, July and August, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 2.98 inches on August 29, 2018. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 4.98 inches (through September 8, 2018).
About 75 days a year swing from below freezing at night to above freezing by day. Those freeze-thaw cycles feed ice dams on roofs, open cracks in foundations and driveways, and stress pipes that are already marginal.
Housing
Illinois's 102 counties range widely in housing age; Hancock ranks 24th, with 74% of its homes built before 1980.
Before 1960 is when 46% of these homes went up. Galvanized supply lines and cast iron drains were standard then, and after 60-plus years both corrode and crack, often out of sight inside a wall or under a slab.
15% of homes were vacant at survey time. A leak in an empty rental or seasonal house can run for days before anyone notices, which is why those losses tend to be larger.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 56 times a year here, close to the Illinois county median of 51. Mold grows when indoor humidity stays above about 60%, the EPA's ceiling. A basement dehumidifier set to 50% and drying anything wet within 24 to 48 hours prevents most problems.
Mold remediation: what to expectMain heating fuel in Hancock County's occupied homes: 48% utility gas, 35% electric, 14% propane and 2% wood. Heating equipment, cooking and electrical failures cause most home fires nationally. Even a small kitchen fire can leave soot through the whole house, because smoke follows air currents into closets, ducts and attic space.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Hancock County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Henderson and McDonough get more pipe-freeze nights than Hancock. Its housing is the oldest in the area by share of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Hancock | Illinois median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 46% | 38% | 27 of 102 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 74% | 66% | 24 of 102 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 11% | 15% | 78 of 102 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 6% | 5.6% | 48 of 102 |
| Vacant homes | 15% | 11% | 20 of 102 |
| Wood or propane heat | 16% | 17% | 56 of 102 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 39/yr | 35/yr | 38 of 102 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 8.1/yr | 8.4/yr | 57 of 102 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 75/yr | 81/yr | 65 of 102 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 56/yr | 51/yr | 42 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 Hancock County: freezing from November to March, heavy rain in June, July and August.
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