Jasper County, Indiana · Rensselaer
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Jasper County averages 40 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly November to March, and 23% of its homes predate 1960.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 6.5 times a year here, most often in June. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
23% of homes here predate 1960, when clay and cast iron sewer laterals were standard. Roots and cracks in those lines are a common cause of backups.
In Jasper County, 5.05 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
25% of occupied homes in Jasper County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Indiana county median of 17%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 31 times a year in Jasper County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
About 33,234 people live in Jasper County, 560 square miles in northwest Indiana, in roughly 13,787 homes. Rensselaer is the county seat; DeMotte, Remington and Wheatfield are the next largest communities. Much of its housing is recent, with a median build year of 1985.
44/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Jasper County ranks 67 of 92 Indiana counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Jasper County ranks highest compared with other Indiana counties.
Jasper is on the colder side of Indiana for pipes. From 2015–2024 it averaged 40 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 120 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 2nd of 92 counties.
Cold snaps are the real risk. The worst in the record lasted 19 days below freezing (ending March 2015), and the low bottomed out near -20°F on January 31, 2019.
The freeze season here runs November to March, with January the coldest. If you travel then, leave the thermostat at 55°F or above and open sink cabinets on outside walls.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Oct 22 and the last spring freeze around Apr 26.
Jasper gets fewer downpours than most Indiana counties, but they still fill basements. The county gets about 39.9 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 6.5 days of an inch or more (64th of 92). Those downpours cluster in June, July and August, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 5.05 inches on August 16, 2016. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 5.09 inches (through August 17, 2016).
About 90 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
Indiana's 92 counties range widely in housing age; Jasper ranks 80th, with 46% of its homes built before 1980.
27% of homes were built in 2000 or later, more than in most of Indiana. Newer plumbing rarely corrodes, so damage here tends to come from appliance supply lines, water heaters, sump pumps and storms.
About 27% of homes went up between 1980 and 1999. Some houses from the late 1970s to the mid-1990s were plumbed with polybutylene, a gray plastic pipe known for failing at fittings. A plumber can tell you in a few minutes whether you have it.
Beyond water
Jasper County averages 31 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in June. Keep indoor humidity under 60%, as the EPA advises, and dry any leak within 24 to 48 hours; in a humid month a wet basement left alone won't dry by itself.
Mold remediation: what to expectBy main heating fuel, Jasper County homes break down as 63% utility gas, 10% electric, 24% propane and 2% wood. Propane heat is more common here than the state median. Have chimneys swept and fuel-burning appliances serviced each fall, and keep three feet clear around stoves and space heaters.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Jasper County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Jasper gets more pipe-freeze nights than any of its neighbors. Benton County has the oldest housing nearby, with 80% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Jasper | Indiana median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 23% | 35% | 77 of 92 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 46% | 58% | 80 of 92 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 27% | 18% | 10 of 92 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 4.4% | 6.4% | 65 of 92 |
| Vacant homes | 7.5% | 9.2% | 61 of 92 |
| Wood or propane heat | 25% | 17% | 26 of 92 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 40/yr | 33/yr | 2 of 92 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 6.5/yr | 7.8/yr | 64 of 92 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 90/yr | 84/yr | 2 of 92 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 31/yr | 38/yr | 76 of 92 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Indiana county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Jasper 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