Marshall County, Indiana · Plymouth
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With 37% of homes built before 1960 and about 38 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 5.5 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 Marshall County gets about 5.5 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
In Marshall County, 3.58 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
16% of occupied homes in Marshall County heat mainly with wood or propane, close to the Indiana county median of 17%.
About 26 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
Marshall County covers 444 square miles of northern Indiana, with about 46,284 residents and 20,111 homes. The county seat is Plymouth, and Bremen, Argos and Bourbon round out the largest towns. Half the homes here were built before 1973, half after.
43/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Marshall County ranks 72 of 92 Indiana counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Marshall County ranks highest compared with other Indiana counties.
Marshall County gets more hard-freeze nights than most of Indiana. From 2015–2024 it averaged 38 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 123 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 11th of 92 counties.
The longest cold spell was straight 19 days without the temperature rising above freezing, ending in March 2015. The coldest night reached about -19°F on January 31, 2019. Burst pipes usually show up when a spell like that breaks and the ice thaws.
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.
Freezing nights typically start around Oct 24 and end around Apr 28.
Marshall gets fewer downpours than most Indiana counties, but they still fill basements. Of roughly 39.3 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 5.5 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 88th of 92. May, June and July see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 3.58 inches, August 16, 2016. The worst three-day stretch dropped 4.95 inches, ending February 21, 2018, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
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
Roughly 59% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Marshall near the middle of Indiana's 92 counties.
Older and newer homes sit side by side here: 37% predate 1960 and 18% are from 2000 or later. Corroded pipe is the typical failure in the first group, burst supply hoses in the second.
About 23% 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.
The Census counted 12% of homes as vacant, above the Indiana county median of 9.2%. Empty houses are where a small leak turns into a large claim, because nobody is there to hear it.
Beyond water
About 26 nights a year in Marshall County stay at 65°F or warmer, a sign of muggy summer air (87th of 92 counties). May is the wettest month. 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 expectBy main heating fuel, Marshall County homes break down as 69% utility gas, 12% electric, 12% propane and 4% wood. Wood heat is above the Indiana norm. Annual chimney and vent inspection, which the NFPA recommends, is one of the most effective fire-prevention habits for these homes.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Marshall County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Marshall gets more pipe-freeze nights than any of its neighbors. Fulton County has the oldest housing nearby, with 66% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Marshall | Indiana median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 37% | 35% | 42 of 92 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 59% | 58% | 41 of 92 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 18% | 18% | 50 of 92 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 6% | 6.4% | 47 of 92 |
| Vacant homes | 12% | 9.2% | 22 of 92 |
| Wood or propane heat | 16% | 17% | 50 of 92 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 38/yr | 33/yr | 11 of 92 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 5.5/yr | 7.8/yr | 88 of 92 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 90/yr | 84/yr | 2 of 92 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 26/yr | 38/yr | 87 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 Marshall County: freezing from November to March, heavy rain in May, 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