McPherson County, Kansas · McPherson
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Pipes freeze in McPherson County on about 35 nights a year, mostly November to February. Older homes, 36% of the stock here, are most at risk.
May brings the most downpours to McPherson County, part of 7.1 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
Sewage backups in McPherson County spike on heavy-rain days, about 7.1 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
McPherson County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 2.8 inches, and about 92 freeze-thaw days a year mean ice dams in some winters.
15% of occupied homes in McPherson County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the Kansas county median of 16.9%.
With 69 muggy nights a year, mold in McPherson County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
McPherson County covers 898 square miles of central Kansas, with about 30,205 residents and 13,176 homes. McPherson is the county seat; Lindsborg, Moundridge and Inman are the next largest communities. The county's median home was built in 1974.
42/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate McPherson County ranks 80 of 105 Kansas counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where McPherson County ranks highest compared with other Kansas counties.
For frozen pipes, McPherson County is a typical Kansas county, which is still plenty. In the 2015–2024 record the county logged about 35 nights a year at or below 20°F (63rd of 105) and 108 below freezing. Twenty degrees is roughly where uninsulated pipes start to freeze.
Cold snaps are the real risk. The worst in the record lasted 13 days below freezing (ending February 2021), and the low bottomed out near -15°F on February 16, 2021.
Most freezing nights fall from November 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 Oct 26 and the last spring freeze around Apr 10.
Rainfall is about average for Kansas. Of roughly 30.5 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 7.1 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 48th of 105. May, June and August see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 2.8 inches, May 8, 2019. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 4.45 inches (through October 10, 2018).
About 92 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
60% of homes in McPherson County predate 1980, below the Kansas county median of 73.7%, which ranks 84th of Kansas's 105 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.
23% date from 1980 to 1999, the window when polybutylene, a gray flexible plastic supply pipe, was used in some homes. It's prone to leaks at the fittings, so it's worth checking for in a house from those years.
Beyond water
McPherson County averages 69 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in May. Mold grows when indoor humidity stays above about 60%, the EPA's ceiling. A basement dehumidifier set to 50% and drying anything wet within 24 to 48 hours prevents most problems.
Mold remediation: what to expectBy main heating fuel, McPherson County homes break down as 58% utility gas, 26% electric, 14% propane and 2% wood. Fires here are likelier to start in the kitchen or the wiring than in the furnace. After any fire, keep the HVAC off until ducts are checked, or soot will travel through the house.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across McPherson County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Ellsworth and Rice get more pipe-freeze nights than McPherson. Rice County has the oldest housing nearby, with 82% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | McPherson | Kansas median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 36% | 48% | 81 of 105 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 60% | 74% | 84 of 105 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 18% | 11% | 20 of 105 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 4.3% | 5.6% | 67 of 105 |
| Vacant homes | 7.7% | 15% | 96 of 105 |
| Wood or propane heat | 15% | 17% | 62 of 105 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 35/yr | 39/yr | 63 of 105 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 7.1/yr | 6.8/yr | 48 of 105 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 92/yr | 97/yr | 64 of 105 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 69/yr | 59/yr | 34 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 McPherson County: freezing from November 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