Franklin County, Kansas · Ottawa
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Franklin County averages 27 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly December to February, and 33% of its homes predate 1960.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 10.3 times a year here, most often in May. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Franklin County gets about 10.3 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 75 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
17% of occupied homes in Franklin County heat mainly with wood or propane, close to the Kansas county median of 16.9%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 74 times a year in Franklin County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
With 11,310 homes and around 26,106 residents, Franklin County is 572 square miles of eastern Kansas. Besides Ottawa, the county seat, the biggest communities are Wellsville, Pomona and Richmond. The county's median home was built in 1975.
46/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Franklin County ranks 67 of 105 Kansas counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Franklin County ranks highest compared with other Kansas counties.
Franklin County is milder than most of Kansas, but not mild enough to skip winterizing. In the 2015–2024 record the county logged about 27 nights a year at or below 20°F (88th of 105) and 92 below freezing. Twenty degrees is roughly where uninsulated pipes start to freeze.
On February 17, 2021 the low fell to about -14°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.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Nov 2 and the last spring freeze around Apr 6.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Kansas. About 10.3 days a year bring an inch or more (8th of 105), most often in May, out of 40 inches of total precipitation. On October 25, 2023, 4.48 inches fell in a single day. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 5.73 inches (through October 27, 2023).
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 75 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
Roughly 56% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Franklin among the newer housing stocks of Kansas's 105 counties.
Since 2000 the county has added enough housing that 19% of homes are that new. Modern PEX and copper rarely fail on their own; the leaks come from connections, appliances and storms.
About 25% of homes went up between 1980 and 1999. Some houses from the late 1970s to the mid-1990s were plumbed with polybutylene, a gray plastic pipe known for failing at fittings. A plumber can tell you in a few minutes whether you have it.
Manufactured and mobile homes make up 10% of the housing here. Water lines in the underbelly depend on intact skirting and working heat tape, and they're usually the first to freeze in a cold snap.
Beyond water
About 74 nights a year in Franklin County stay at 65°F or warmer, a sign of muggy summer air (19th of 105 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 Franklin County's occupied homes: 50% utility gas, 31% electric, 15% 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 Franklin County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Douglas, Miami and Osage get more pipe-freeze nights than Franklin. It also has the most heavy-rain days in its area. Anderson County has the oldest housing nearby, with 66% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Franklin | Kansas median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 33% | 48% | 85 of 105 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 56% | 74% | 92 of 105 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 19% | 11% | 15 of 105 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 9.7% | 5.6% | 23 of 105 |
| Vacant homes | 8% | 15% | 91 of 105 |
| Wood or propane heat | 17% | 17% | 56 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 | 8 of 105 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 75/yr | 97/yr | 98 of 105 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 74/yr | 59/yr | 19 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 Franklin County: freezing from December to February, 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