Henry County, Iowa · Mount Pleasant
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With 41% of homes built before 1960 and about 50 hard-freeze nights a year, frozen and split pipes are a leading winter risk in the county.
Basements flood here mostly in May. Henry County averages 7.2 days a year with an inch of rain or more.
Sewage backups in Henry County spike on heavy-rain days, about 7.2 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Henry County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 3.83 inches, and about 92 freeze-thaw days a year mean ice dams in some winters.
26% of occupied homes in Henry County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Iowa county median of 22.1%.
With 38 muggy nights a year, mold in Henry County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
About 20,004 people live in Henry County, 434 square miles in southeast Iowa, in roughly 8,445 homes. The county seat is Mount Pleasant, and New London, Wayland and Winfield round out the largest towns. Half the homes here were built before 1968, half after.
35/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Henry County ranks 87 of 99 Iowa counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Henry County ranks highest compared with other Iowa counties.
Winters here are on the gentler end for Iowa, and pipes still freeze. It averaged 129 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 50 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 99 Iowa counties that's 91st.
On January 31, 2019 the low fell to about -25°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.
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.
Freezing nights typically start around Oct 23 and end around Apr 23.
Rainfall is about average for Iowa. The county gets about 35.9 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 7.2 days of an inch or more (42nd of 99). Those downpours cluster in May, July and September, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 3.83 inches on August 29, 2018. The worst three-day stretch dropped 4.07 inches, ending May 30, 2019, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 92 days a year. Each cycle melts and refreezes water at roof edges and in foundation cracks, which is how ice dams and basement seepage get started.
Housing
Iowa's 99 counties range widely in housing age; Henry ranks 60th, with 68% of its homes built before 1980.
Housing age is mixed: 41% 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.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 38 times a year here, above the Iowa county median of 29. 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 Henry County's occupied homes: 53% utility gas, 20% electric, 22% propane and 4% wood. Wood heat is above the Iowa 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 Henry County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Jefferson and Washington get more pipe-freeze nights than Henry. Lee County has the oldest housing nearby, with 77% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Henry | Iowa median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 41% | 48% | 76 of 99 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 68% | 73% | 60 of 99 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 15% | 13% | 43 of 99 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 4.5% | 3.2% | 25 of 99 |
| Vacant homes | 9.5% | 9.5% | 49 of 99 |
| Wood or propane heat | 26% | 22% | 41 of 99 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 50/yr | 62/yr | 91 of 99 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 7.2/yr | 7.1/yr | 42 of 99 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 92/yr | 94/yr | 67 of 99 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 38/yr | 29/yr | 19 of 99 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Iowa county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Henry County: freezing from November to March, heavy rain in May, July and September.
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