Sac County, Iowa · Sac City
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Sac County averages 68 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly November to March, and 54% of its homes predate 1960.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 5.3 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 Sac County gets about 5.3 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
Roof leaks here come from summer downpours and, with about 92 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
23% of occupied homes in Sac County heat mainly with wood or propane, close to the Iowa county median of 22.1%.
With 29 muggy nights a year, mold in Sac County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
With 5,118 homes and around 9,689 residents, Sac County is 575 square miles of western Iowa. Besides Sac City, the county seat, the biggest communities are Lake View, Odebolt and Early. It has some of the oldest housing in the state: the median home went up in 1957.
53/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Sac County ranks 39 of 99 Iowa counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Sac County ranks highest compared with other Iowa counties.
Sac is on the colder side of Iowa for pipes. From 2015–2024 it averaged 68 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 143 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 30th of 99 counties.
On February 16, 2021 the low fell to about -26°F, and in the stretch ending February 2019 the county went 19 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
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.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Oct 18 and the last spring freeze around Apr 25.
Sac gets fewer downpours than most Iowa counties, but they still fill basements. The county gets about 30.6 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 5.3 days of an inch or more (97th of 99). Those downpours cluster in May, July and August, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 2.88 inches on August 20, 2018. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 3.98 inches (through August 21, 2018).
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
81% of homes in Sac County predate 1980, above the Iowa county median of 72.8%, which ranks 13th of Iowa's 99 counties.
Before 1960 is when 54% of these homes went up. Galvanized supply lines and cast iron drains were standard then, and after 60-plus years both corrode and crack, often out of sight inside a wall or under a slab.
The Census counted 16% 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
About 29 nights a year in Sac County stay at 65°F or warmer, a sign of muggy summer air (50th of 99 counties). May is the wettest month. Keep indoor humidity under 60%, as the EPA advises, and dry any leak within 24 to 48 hours; in a humid month a wet basement left alone won't dry by itself.
Mold remediation: what to expectMain heating fuel in Sac County's occupied homes: 45% utility gas, 29% electric, 23% propane and under 1% 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 Sac County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Buena Vista and Calhoun get more pipe-freeze nights than Sac. Ida County has the oldest housing nearby, with 84% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Sac | Iowa median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 54% | 48% | 20 of 99 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 81% | 73% | 13 of 99 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 8.9% | 13% | 87 of 99 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 2.6% | 3.2% | 61 of 99 |
| Vacant homes | 16% | 9.5% | 12 of 99 |
| Wood or propane heat | 23% | 22% | 51 of 99 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 68/yr | 62/yr | 30 of 99 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 5.3/yr | 7.1/yr | 97 of 99 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 92/yr | 94/yr | 67 of 99 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 29/yr | 29/yr | 50 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 Sac County: freezing from November to March, heavy rain in May, July 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