Wabaunsee County, Kansas · Alma
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Pipes freeze in Wabaunsee County on about 35 nights a year, mostly November to February. Older homes, 47% of the stock here, are most at risk.
Basements flood here mostly in May. Wabaunsee County averages 9.4 days a year with an inch of rain or more.
Sewage backups in Wabaunsee County spike on heavy-rain days, about 9.4 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Wabaunsee County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 3.19 inches, and about 86 freeze-thaw days a year mean ice dams in some winters.
46% of occupied homes in Wabaunsee County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Kansas county median of 16.9%.
With 64 muggy nights a year, mold in Wabaunsee County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
About 7,009 people live in Wabaunsee County, 794 square miles in eastern Kansas, in roughly 3,136 homes. The county seat is Alma, and Maple Hill, Alta Vista and Eskridge round out the largest towns. The county's median home was built in 1964.
54/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Wabaunsee County ranks 41 of 105 Kansas counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Wabaunsee County ranks highest compared with other Kansas counties.
For frozen pipes, Wabaunsee County is a typical Kansas county, which is still plenty. It averaged 107 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 35 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 105 Kansas counties that's 63rd.
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 -17°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 9.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Kansas. The county gets about 35.6 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 9.4 days of an inch or more (22nd of 105). Those downpours cluster in April, May and July, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 3.19 inches on June 23, 2019. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 4.27 inches (through May 9, 2019).
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 86 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 64% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Wabaunsee among the newer housing stocks of Kansas's 105 counties.
19% of homes were built in 2000 or later, more than in most of Kansas. Newer plumbing rarely corrodes, so damage here tends to come from appliance supply lines, water heaters, sump pumps and storms.
Beyond water
About 64 nights a year in Wabaunsee County stay at 65°F or warmer, a sign of muggy summer air (40th 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 Wabaunsee County's occupied homes: 31% utility gas, 18% electric, 36% propane and 10% wood. Wood and propane heat are above the Kansas norm. Annual chimney and vent inspection, which the NFPA recommends, is one of the most effective fire-prevention habits for these homes.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Wabaunsee County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Morris, Pottawatomie and Riley get more pipe-freeze nights than Wabaunsee. Lyon County has the oldest housing nearby, with 69% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Wabaunsee | Kansas median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 47% | 48% | 58 of 105 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 64% | 74% | 76 of 105 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 19% | 11% | 16 of 105 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 5.5% | 5.6% | 54 of 105 |
| Vacant homes | 14% | 15% | 58 of 105 |
| Wood or propane heat | 46% | 17% | 2 of 105 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 35/yr | 39/yr | 63 of 105 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 9.4/yr | 6.8/yr | 22 of 105 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 86/yr | 97/yr | 77 of 105 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 64/yr | 59/yr | 40 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 Wabaunsee County: freezing from November to February, heavy rain in April, May and July.
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