Riley County, Kansas · Manhattan
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With 21% of homes built before 1960 and about 38 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 8.6 times a year here, most often in May. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
21% 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 Riley County, 2.62 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
7% of occupied homes in Riley County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the Kansas county median of 16.9%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 65 times a year in Riley County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
About 71,946 people live in Riley County, 610 square miles in northeast Kansas, in roughly 30,755 homes. The county seat is Manhattan, and Fort Riley, Ogden and Riley round out the largest towns. The county's median home was built in 1984.
41/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Riley County ranks 88 of 105 Kansas counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Riley County ranks highest compared with other Kansas counties.
For frozen pipes, Riley County is a typical Kansas county, which is still plenty. In the 2015–2024 record the county logged about 38 nights a year at or below 20°F (54th of 105) and 112 below freezing. Twenty degrees is roughly where uninsulated pipes start to freeze.
On February 16, 2021 the low fell to about -19°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 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.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Kansas. Of roughly 33.5 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 8.6 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 35th of 105. May, July and September see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 2.62 inches, June 5, 2015. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 4.06 inches (through May 8, 2019).
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
Roughly 46% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Riley among the newer housing stocks of Kansas's 105 counties.
Growth since 2000 added 31% 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.
About 23% 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.
Renters occupy 54% of homes. If you rent, the building is usually the landlord's to repair, but your belongings are only covered by renters insurance.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 65 times a year here, above the Kansas county median of 59. The EPA recommends keeping indoor humidity below 60%, ideally 30 to 50%. Basements can pass 60% on their own in summer, so a dehumidifier matters even without a leak, and anything wet should be dried within 24 to 48 hours.
Mold remediation: what to expectBy main heating fuel, Riley County homes break down as 50% utility gas, 41% electric, 7% propane and under 1% 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 Riley County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Marshall, Pottawatomie and Washington get more pipe-freeze nights than Riley. Washington County has the oldest housing nearby, with 80% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Riley | Kansas median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 21% | 48% | 103 of 105 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 46% | 74% | 99 of 105 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 31% | 11% | 4 of 105 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 5% | 5.6% | 58 of 105 |
| Vacant homes | 9.9% | 15% | 82 of 105 |
| Wood or propane heat | 7.2% | 17% | 93 of 105 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 38/yr | 39/yr | 54 of 105 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 8.6/yr | 6.8/yr | 35 of 105 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 92/yr | 97/yr | 64 of 105 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 65/yr | 59/yr | 39 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 Riley County: freezing from November to February, heavy rain in May, July 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