Saline County, Illinois · Harrisburg
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Saline County averages 20 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly December to February, and 38% of its homes predate 1960.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 11.4 times a year here, most often in March. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Sewage backups in Saline County spike on heavy-rain days, about 11.4 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Roof leaks here come from summer downpours and, with about 67 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
13% of occupied homes in Saline County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the Illinois county median of 16.5%.
About 76 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
About 23,213 people live in Saline County, 380 square miles in southeast Illinois, in roughly 11,547 homes. Besides Harrisburg, the county seat, the biggest communities are Eldorado, Carrier Mills and Galatia. Half the homes here were built before 1971, half after.
52/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Saline County ranks 42 of 102 Illinois counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Saline County ranks highest compared with other Illinois counties.
Winters here are on the gentler end for Illinois, and pipes still freeze. From 2015–2024 it averaged 20 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 79 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 91st of 102 counties.
Cold snaps are the real risk. The worst in the record lasted 13 days below freezing (ending January 2018), and the low bottomed out near -5°F on February 19, 2015.
Expect the hardest freezes in January, inside a season that runs December to February. That's when an outdoor spigot left connected to a hose, or a pipe in a crawl space, is most likely to split.
Freezing nights typically start around Nov 1 and end around Apr 5.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Illinois. About 11.4 days a year bring an inch or more (18th of 102), most often in March, out of 48.9 inches of total precipitation. On July 4, 2016, 2.99 inches fell in a single day. The worst three-day stretch dropped 5.64 inches, ending May 1, 2017, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
About 67 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; Saline ranks 51st, with 66% of its homes built before 1980.
Housing age is mixed: 38% of homes are pre-1960 and 15% are 2000 or newer. Ask any plumber which era your house is from and you'll know which failures to watch for.
Here 12% of housing is manufactured homes. Check the skirting and the heat tape on the main water line every fall, because that one exposed line is what freezes.
13% 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
Saline County averages 76 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in March. 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 expectBy main heating fuel, Saline County homes break down as 51% utility gas, 35% electric, 10% 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 Saline County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Franklin gets more pipe-freeze nights than Saline. Gallatin County has the oldest housing nearby, with 72% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Saline | Illinois median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 38% | 38% | 51 of 102 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 66% | 66% | 51 of 102 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 15% | 15% | 43 of 102 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 12% | 5.6% | 20 of 102 |
| Vacant homes | 13% | 11% | 25 of 102 |
| Wood or propane heat | 13% | 17% | 67 of 102 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 20/yr | 35/yr | 91 of 102 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 11/yr | 8.4/yr | 18 of 102 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 67/yr | 81/yr | 88 of 102 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 76/yr | 51/yr | 12 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 Saline County: freezing from December to February, heavy rain in March, April 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