Madison County, Indiana · Anderson
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Pipes freeze in Madison County on about 31 nights a year, mostly November to March. Older homes, 42% of the stock here, are most at risk.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 7 times a year here, most often in June. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Madison County gets about 7 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 78 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
6% of occupied homes in Madison County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the Indiana county median of 17%.
With 41 muggy nights a year, mold in Madison County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
About 131,900 people live in Madison County, 452 square miles in eastern Indiana, in roughly 59,301 homes. Anderson is the county seat; Elwood, Pendleton and Alexandria are the next largest communities. The county's median home was built in 1965.
54/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Madison County ranks 31 of 92 Indiana counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Madison County ranks highest compared with other Indiana counties.
For frozen pipes, Madison County is a typical Indiana county, which is still plenty. From 2015–2024 it averaged 31 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 102 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 51st of 92 counties.
On January 2, 2018 the low fell to about -13°F, and in the stretch ending March 2015 the county went 19 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
Expect the hardest freezes in January, inside a season that runs November to March. That's when an outdoor spigot left connected to a hose, or a pipe in a crawl space, is most likely to split.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Oct 24 and the last spring freeze around Apr 19.
Rainfall is about average for Indiana. The county gets about 42.9 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 7 days of an inch or more (52nd of 92). Those downpours cluster in April, June and July, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 2.54 inches on May 31, 2015. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 4.32 inches (through September 9, 2018).
About 78 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; Madison ranks 14th, with 70% of its homes built before 1980.
42% were built before 1960. Homes from that era often still have galvanized steel supply pipe, which rusts from the inside until it pinholes, and cast iron drains that crack with age. Slow leaks behind walls are a common start to water damage in these houses.
Renters occupy 30% of homes. If you rent, the building is usually the landlord's to repair, but your belongings are only covered by renters insurance.
Beyond water
Madison County averages 41 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 expectHeating fuel matters for fire risk. In Madison County it's 66% utility gas, 26% electric, 5% propane and under 1% 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 Madison County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Delaware, Grant, Hamilton, Henry and Tipton get more pipe-freeze nights than Madison. Henry County has the oldest housing nearby, with 76% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Madison | Indiana median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 42% | 35% | 25 of 92 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 70% | 58% | 14 of 92 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 13% | 18% | 71 of 92 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 5.4% | 6.4% | 53 of 92 |
| Vacant homes | 9.9% | 9.2% | 37 of 92 |
| Wood or propane heat | 5.7% | 17% | 78 of 92 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 31/yr | 33/yr | 51 of 92 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 7/yr | 7.8/yr | 52 of 92 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 78/yr | 84/yr | 73 of 92 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 41/yr | 38/yr | 39 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 Madison County: freezing from November to March, heavy rain in April, 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