Pulaski County, Kentucky · Somerset
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Pipes freeze in Pulaski County on about 18 nights a year, mostly December to February. Older homes, 13% of the stock here, are most at risk.
February brings the most downpours to Pulaski County, part of 13.1 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
Sewage backups in Pulaski County spike on heavy-rain days, about 13.1 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Pulaski County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 2.76 inches, and about 69 freeze-thaw days a year mean ice dams in some winters.
5% of occupied homes in Pulaski County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the Kentucky county median of 12.6%.
With 59 muggy nights a year, mold in Pulaski County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
About 65,897 people live in Pulaski County, 658 square miles in southern Kentucky, in roughly 31,722 homes. The county seat is Somerset, and Ferguson, Burnside and Science Hill round out the largest towns. Much of its housing is recent, with a median build year of 1986.
42/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Pulaski County ranks 90 of 120 Kentucky counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Pulaski County ranks highest compared with other Kentucky counties.
For frozen pipes, Pulaski County is a typical Kentucky county, which is still plenty. In the 2015–2024 record the county logged about 18 nights a year at or below 20°F (71st of 120) and 78 below freezing. Twenty degrees is roughly where uninsulated pipes start to freeze.
The longest cold spell was straight 8 days without the temperature rising above freezing, ending in January 2018. The coldest night reached about -9°F on February 20, 2015. Burst pipes usually show up when a spell like that breaks and the ice thaws.
Expect the hardest freezes in January, inside a season that runs December to February. That's when an outdoor spigot left connected to a hose, or a pipe in a crawl space, is most likely to split.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Nov 3 and the last spring freeze around Apr 12.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Kentucky. About 13.1 days a year bring an inch or more (38th of 120), most often in February, out of 57.8 inches of total precipitation. On February 17, 2023, 2.76 inches fell in a single day. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 4.93 inches (through March 1, 2021).
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 69 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
43% of homes in Pulaski County predate 1980, close to the Kentucky county median of 44.1%, which ranks 66th of Kentucky's 120 counties.
Housing age is mixed: 13% of homes are pre-1960 and 28% are 2000 or newer. Ask any plumber which era your house is from and you'll know which failures to watch for.
29% 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.
Here 17% of housing is manufactured homes. Check the skirting and the heat tape on the main water line every fall, because that one exposed line is what freezes.
The Census counted 17% 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.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 59 times a year here, close to the Kentucky 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 expectHeating fuel matters for fire risk. In Pulaski County it's 10% utility gas, 82% electric, 3% propane and 2% 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 Pulaski County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Casey, Laurel, Lincoln and Rockcastle get more pipe-freeze nights than Pulaski. Its housing is the oldest in the area by share of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Pulaski | Kentucky median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 13% | 18% | 91 of 120 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 43% | 44% | 66 of 120 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 28% | 25% | 30 of 120 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 17% | 19% | 64 of 120 |
| Vacant homes | 17% | 13% | 26 of 120 |
| Wood or propane heat | 5.3% | 13% | 105 of 120 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 18/yr | 20/yr | 71 of 120 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 13/yr | 12/yr | 38 of 120 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 69/yr | 73/yr | 86 of 120 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 59/yr | 59/yr | 58 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 Pulaski County: freezing from December to February, heavy rain in February, June 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