Gove County, Kansas · Gove City
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With 54% of homes built before 1960 and about 53 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 2.7 times a year here, most often in May. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
54% 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.
In Gove County, 2.55 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
25% of occupied homes in Gove County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Kansas county median of 16.9%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 34 times a year in Gove County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
Gove County covers 1,072 square miles of western Kansas, with about 2,799 residents and 1,331 homes. Gove City is the county seat; Quinter, Grinnell and Grainfield are the next largest communities. It has some of the oldest housing in the state: the median home went up in 1958.
50/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Gove County ranks 60 of 105 Kansas counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Gove County ranks highest compared with other Kansas counties.
Gove is on the colder side of Kansas for pipes. From 2015–2024 it averaged 53 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 14th of 105 counties.
The longest cold spell was straight 13 days without the temperature rising above freezing, ending in February 2021. The coldest night reached about -20°F on February 15, 2021. 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 18 and the last spring freeze around Apr 18.
Gove gets fewer downpours than most Kansas counties, but they still fill basements. About 2.7 days a year bring an inch or more (102nd of 105), most often in May, out of 19.7 inches of total precipitation. On May 29, 2018, 2.55 inches fell in a single day. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 2.93 inches (through April 18, 2016).
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 119 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
77% of homes in Gove County predate 1980, close to the Kansas county median of 73.7%, which ranks 28th of Kansas's 105 counties.
54% were built before 1960. Homes from that era often still have galvanized steel supply pipe, which rusts from the inside until it pinholes, and cast iron drains that crack with age. Slow leaks behind walls are a common start to water damage in these houses.
Beyond water
About 34 nights a year in Gove County stay at 65°F or warmer, a sign of muggy summer air (89th 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 expectBy main heating fuel, Gove County homes break down as 54% utility gas, 18% electric, 23% propane and 2% 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 Gove County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Logan, Scott, Sheridan and Thomas get more pipe-freeze nights than Gove. All of its neighbors see more heavy-rain days. Logan County has the oldest housing nearby, with 84% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Gove | Kansas median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 54% | 48% | 31 of 105 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 77% | 74% | 28 of 105 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 4.7% | 11% | 95 of 105 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 4.7% | 5.6% | 62 of 105 |
| Vacant homes | 12% | 15% | 68 of 105 |
| Wood or propane heat | 25% | 17% | 27 of 105 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 53/yr | 39/yr | 14 of 105 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 2.7/yr | 6.8/yr | 102 of 105 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 119/yr | 97/yr | 17 of 105 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 34/yr | 59/yr | 89 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 Gove County: freezing from November to March, heavy rain in April, May 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