Lee County, Iowa · Keokuk
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With 50% of homes built before 1960 and about 43 hard-freeze nights a year, frozen and split pipes are a leading winter risk in the county.
September brings the most downpours to Lee County, part of 8.1 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
50% 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.
Lee County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 2.83 inches, and about 82 freeze-thaw days a year mean ice dams in some winters.
13% of occupied homes in Lee County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the Iowa county median of 22.1%.
About 50 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
Lee County covers 518 square miles of southeast Iowa, with about 32,893 residents and 15,794 homes. Keokuk is the county seat; Fort Madison, West Point and Denmark are the next largest communities. Half the homes here were built before 1960, half after.
53/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Lee County ranks 38 of 99 Iowa counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Lee County ranks highest compared with other Iowa counties.
Winters here are on the gentler end for Iowa, and pipes still freeze. From 2015–2024 it averaged 43 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 115 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 99th of 99 counties.
The longest cold spell was straight 15 days without the temperature rising above freezing, ending in January 2018. The coldest night reached about -20°F on January 31, 2019. Burst pipes usually show up when a spell like that breaks and the ice thaws.
Most freezing nights fall from November to March, peaking in January. Disconnect garden hoses and shut off outdoor spigots before the first hard frost, and keep the heat at 55°F or higher if you'll be away.
Freezing nights typically start around Oct 27 and end around Apr 16.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Iowa. About 8.1 days a year bring an inch or more (19th of 99), most often in September, out of 37.3 inches of total precipitation. On May 29, 2019, 2.83 inches fell in a single day. The worst three-day stretch dropped 4.52 inches, ending September 8, 2018, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
About 82 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
Iowa's 99 counties range widely in housing age; Lee ranks 26th, with 77% of its homes built before 1980.
The mix runs from 50% built before 1960 to 9% built since 2000, so older neighborhoods bring aging pipe while newer subdivisions bring failed appliance lines and water heaters.
Beyond water
About 50 nights a year in Lee County stay at 65°F or warmer, a sign of muggy summer air (1st of 99 counties). May is the wettest month. 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 expectMain heating fuel in Lee County's occupied homes: 56% utility gas, 29% electric, 12% propane and 2% wood. Most homes here heat with gas or electricity, so cooking and electrical faults are the likelier fire sources. Even a contained kitchen fire can send soot through the ductwork to every room.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Lee County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Every neighboring county gets more pipe-freeze nights than Lee. Its housing is the oldest in the area by share of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Lee | Iowa median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 50% | 48% | 41 of 99 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 77% | 73% | 26 of 99 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 9.3% | 13% | 85 of 99 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 3.8% | 3.2% | 36 of 99 |
| Vacant homes | 9.3% | 9.5% | 51 of 99 |
| Wood or propane heat | 13% | 22% | 83 of 99 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 43/yr | 62/yr | 99 of 99 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 8.1/yr | 7.1/yr | 19 of 99 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 82/yr | 94/yr | 99 of 99 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 50/yr | 29/yr | 1 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 Lee County: freezing from November to March, heavy rain in June, 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