Coffey County, Kansas · Burlington
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With 41% of homes built before 1960 and about 27 hard-freeze nights a year, frozen and split pipes are a leading winter risk in the county.
Basements flood here mostly in May. Coffey County averages 10.2 days a year with an inch of rain or more.
41% 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.
Coffey County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 3.8 inches, and about 79 freeze-thaw days a year mean ice dams in some winters.
30% of occupied homes in Coffey County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Kansas county median of 16.9%.
With 72 muggy nights a year, mold in Coffey County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
About 8,308 people live in Coffey County, 627 square miles in eastern Kansas, in roughly 3,998 homes. The county seat is Burlington, and Lebo, Waverly and LeRoy round out the largest towns. Half the homes here were built before 1970, half after.
49/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Coffey County ranks 62 of 105 Kansas counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Coffey County ranks highest compared with other Kansas counties.
Winters here are on the gentler end for Kansas, and pipes still freeze. From 2015–2024 it averaged 27 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 95 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 88th of 105 counties.
On February 17, 2021 the low fell to about -15°F, and in the stretch ending February 2021 the county went 13 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
Most freezing nights fall from December to February, 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 31 and end around Apr 6.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Kansas. About 10.2 days a year bring an inch or more (9th of 105), most often in May, out of 39.1 inches of total precipitation. On May 21, 2019, 3.8 inches fell in a single day. The worst three-day stretch dropped 5.25 inches, ending September 10, 2016, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
About 79 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
62% of homes in Coffey County predate 1980, below the Kansas county median of 73.7%, which ranks 79th of Kansas's 105 counties.
Since 2000 the county has added enough housing that 18% of homes are that new. Modern PEX and copper rarely fail on their own; the leaks come from connections, appliances and storms.
7% of homes are manufactured or mobile homes, above the Kansas county median of 5.6%. Their water lines run under the floor behind the skirting, so a torn skirt or failed heat tape freezes them faster than lines in a site-built house.
Beyond water
Coffey County averages 72 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in May. 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 Coffey County's occupied homes: 48% utility gas, 22% electric, 27% propane and 3% wood. Propane heat is more common here than in most Kansas counties. Heating equipment is one of the leading causes of home fires nationally, and the NFPA recommends having chimneys and vents inspected every year.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Coffey County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Greenwood, Lyon and Osage get more pipe-freeze nights than Coffey. Woodson County has the oldest housing nearby, with 75% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Coffey | Kansas median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 41% | 48% | 68 of 105 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 62% | 74% | 79 of 105 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 18% | 11% | 19 of 105 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 7% | 5.6% | 40 of 105 |
| Vacant homes | 11% | 15% | 71 of 105 |
| Wood or propane heat | 30% | 17% | 13 of 105 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 27/yr | 39/yr | 88 of 105 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 10/yr | 6.8/yr | 9 of 105 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 79/yr | 97/yr | 90 of 105 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 72/yr | 59/yr | 24 of 105 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Kansas county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Coffey County: freezing from December to February, heavy rain in May, 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