Fulton County, Kentucky · Hickman
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Fulton County averages 13 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly December to February, and 29% of its homes predate 1960.
March brings the most downpours to Fulton County, part of 14.8 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Fulton County gets about 14.8 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
In Fulton County, 3.41 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
14% of occupied homes in Fulton County heat mainly with wood or propane, close to the Kentucky county median of 12.6%.
About 91 nights a year here stay at 65°F or warmer, so basements and crawl spaces can grow mold even without a leak.
Local risk profile
With 3,158 homes and around 6,409 residents, Fulton County is 206 square miles of southwest Kentucky. Besides Hickman, the county seat, the biggest communities are Fulton and Cayce. Half the homes here were built before 1972, half after.
66/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Fulton County ranks 4 of 120 Kentucky counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Fulton County ranks highest compared with other Kentucky counties.
Winters here are on the gentler end for Kentucky, and pipes still freeze. It averaged 63 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 13 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 120 Kentucky counties that's 120th.
On December 23, 2022 the low fell to about -3°F, and in the stretch ending February 2021 the county went 10 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
The freeze season here runs December to February, with January the coldest. If you travel then, leave the thermostat at 55°F or above and open sink cabinets on outside walls.
Freezing nights typically start around Nov 4 and end around Mar 30.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Kentucky. The county gets about 55.1 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 14.8 days of an inch or more (5th of 120). Those downpours cluster in January, March and April, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 3.41 inches on March 10, 2016. The worst three-day stretch dropped 7.92 inches, ending August 5, 2023, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 54 times a year here. They're the main driver of ice dams and of water working its way through foundation cracks in late winter.
Housing
66% of homes in Fulton County predate 1980, above the Kentucky county median of 44.1%, which ranks 2nd of Kentucky's 120 counties.
In Fulton County 29% of homes are older than 1960. If yours is one of them and the plumbing has never been replaced, expect galvanized steel supply pipe and cast iron drain lines, the two materials most likely to fail quietly.
The Census counted 19% of homes as vacant, above the Kentucky county median of 13.2%. Empty houses are where a small leak turns into a large claim, because nobody is there to hear it.
Renters occupy 38% 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 91 times a year here, above the Kentucky county median of 59. 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, Fulton County homes break down as 36% utility gas, 49% electric, 12% propane and 1% wood. Heating equipment, cooking and electrical failures cause most home fires nationally. Even a small kitchen fire can leave soot through the whole house, because smoke follows air currents into closets, ducts and attic space.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Fulton County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Every neighboring county gets more pipe-freeze nights than Fulton. It also has the most heavy-rain days in its area. Its housing is the oldest in the area by share of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Fulton | Kentucky median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 29% | 18% | 10 of 120 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 66% | 44% | 2 of 120 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 13% | 25% | 118 of 120 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 4.7% | 19% | 108 of 120 |
| Vacant homes | 19% | 13% | 20 of 120 |
| Wood or propane heat | 14% | 13% | 62 of 120 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 13/yr | 20/yr | 120 of 120 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 15/yr | 12/yr | 5 of 120 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 54/yr | 73/yr | 120 of 120 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 91/yr | 59/yr | 3 of 120 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Kentucky county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Fulton County: freezing from December to February, heavy rain in January, March and April.
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