Plymouth County, Iowa · Le Mars
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With 39% of homes built before 1960 and about 71 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 6.3 times a year here, most often in August. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Plymouth County gets about 6.3 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
In Plymouth County, 2.57 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
14% of occupied homes in Plymouth County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the Iowa county median of 22.1%.
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
With 10,891 homes and around 25,747 residents, Plymouth County is 863 square miles of northwest Iowa. Le Mars is the county seat; Remsen, Akron and Kingsley are the next largest communities. Half the homes here were built before 1971, half after.
39/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Plymouth County ranks 81 of 99 Iowa counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Plymouth County ranks highest compared with other Iowa counties.
Plymouth County gets more hard-freeze nights than most of Iowa. In the 2015–2024 record the county logged about 71 nights a year at or below 20°F (23rd of 99) and 150 below freezing. Twenty degrees is roughly where uninsulated pipes start to freeze.
Cold snaps are the real risk. The worst in the record lasted 32 days below freezing (ending March 2019), and the low bottomed out near -28°F on February 16, 2021.
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 14 and end around Apr 25.
Plymouth gets fewer downpours than most Iowa counties, but they still fill basements. Of roughly 29.9 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 6.3 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 79th of 99. May, June and August see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 2.57 inches, August 6, 2023. The worst three-day stretch dropped 4.61 inches, ending August 19, 2015, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 98 times a year here. They're the main driver of ice dams and of water working its way through foundation cracks in late winter.
Housing
63% of homes in Plymouth County predate 1980, below the Iowa county median of 72.8%, which ranks 82nd of Iowa's 99 counties.
The mix runs from 39% built before 1960 to 16% built since 2000, so older neighborhoods bring aging pipe while newer subdivisions bring failed appliance lines and water heaters.
Beyond water
Plymouth County averages 26 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in May. 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 expectHeating fuel matters for fire risk. In Plymouth County it's 46% utility gas, 38% electric, 13% propane and 1% wood. Fires here are likelier to start in the kitchen or the wiring than in the furnace. After any fire, keep the HVAC off until ducts are checked, or soot will travel through the house.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Plymouth County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Cherokee and Sioux get more pipe-freeze nights than Plymouth. Cherokee County has the oldest housing nearby, with 84% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Plymouth | Iowa median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 39% | 48% | 82 of 99 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 63% | 73% | 82 of 99 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 16% | 13% | 33 of 99 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 3.8% | 3.2% | 36 of 99 |
| Vacant homes | 5.3% | 9.5% | 96 of 99 |
| Wood or propane heat | 14% | 22% | 81 of 99 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 71/yr | 62/yr | 23 of 99 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 6.3/yr | 7.1/yr | 79 of 99 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 98/yr | 94/yr | 3 of 99 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 26/yr | 29/yr | 60 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 Plymouth County: freezing from November to March, heavy rain in May, June 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