Poweshiek County, Iowa · Montezuma
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Pipes freeze in Poweshiek County on about 58 nights a year, mostly November to March. Older homes, 40% of the stock here, are most at risk.
Basements flood here mostly in June. Poweshiek County averages 7.4 days a year with an inch of rain or more.
Sewage backups in Poweshiek County spike on heavy-rain days, about 7.4 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Poweshiek County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 2.87 inches, and about 93 freeze-thaw days a year mean ice dams in some winters.
26% of occupied homes in Poweshiek County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Iowa county median of 22.1%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 31 times a year in Poweshiek County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
With 8,975 homes and around 18,545 residents, Poweshiek County is 585 square miles of central Iowa. Besides Montezuma, the county seat, the biggest communities are Grinnell, Brooklyn and Holiday Lake. The county's median home was built in 1971.
43/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Poweshiek County ranks 71 of 99 Iowa counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Poweshiek County ranks highest compared with other Iowa counties.
For frozen pipes, Poweshiek County is a typical Iowa county, which is still plenty. From 2015–2024 it averaged 58 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 137 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 57th of 99 counties.
The longest cold spell was straight 17 days without the temperature rising above freezing, ending in February 2021. The coldest night reached about -28°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.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Oct 17 and the last spring freeze around Apr 25.
Rainfall is about average for Iowa. Of roughly 35.9 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 7.4 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 34th of 99. June, August and September see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 2.87 inches, June 10, 2020. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 5.15 inches (through September 3, 2018).
About 93 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
65% of homes in Poweshiek County predate 1980, below the Iowa county median of 72.8%, which ranks 77th of Iowa's 99 counties.
Growth since 2000 added 18% of today's homes. In houses that new, the weak points are washing machine hoses, ice maker lines, water heaters and sump pumps rather than the pipes in the walls.
The Census counted 13% of homes as vacant, above the Iowa county median of 9.5%. Empty houses are where a small leak turns into a large claim, because nobody is there to hear it.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 31 times a year here, close to the Iowa county median of 29. 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 Poweshiek County it's 45% utility gas, 26% electric, 25% propane and 1% wood. Propane heat is more common here than the state median. Have chimneys swept and fuel-burning appliances serviced each fall, and keep three feet clear around stoves and space heaters.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Poweshiek County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Tama gets more pipe-freeze nights than Poweshiek. It also has the most heavy-rain days in its area. Keokuk County has the oldest housing nearby, with 80% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Poweshiek | Iowa median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 40% | 48% | 79 of 99 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 65% | 73% | 77 of 99 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 18% | 13% | 22 of 99 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 3.8% | 3.2% | 36 of 99 |
| Vacant homes | 13% | 9.5% | 19 of 99 |
| Wood or propane heat | 26% | 22% | 37 of 99 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 58/yr | 62/yr | 57 of 99 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 7.4/yr | 7.1/yr | 34 of 99 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 93/yr | 94/yr | 54 of 99 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 31/yr | 29/yr | 42 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 Poweshiek County: freezing from November to March, heavy rain in June, August 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