Union County, Kentucky · Morganfield
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Union County averages 18 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly December to February, and 27% of its homes predate 1960.
March brings the most downpours to Union County, part of 11.8 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
27% 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 Union County, 3.23 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
17% of occupied homes in Union County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Kentucky county median of 12.6%.
With 83 muggy nights a year, mold in Union County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
With 5,846 homes and around 13,260 residents, Union County is 343 square miles of western Kentucky. The county seat is Morganfield, and Sturgis, Breckinridge Center and Uniontown round out the largest towns. The county's median home was built in 1976.
61/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Union County ranks 28 of 120 Kentucky counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Union County ranks highest compared with other Kentucky counties.
For frozen pipes, Union County is a typical Kentucky county, which is still plenty. It averaged 77 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 18 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 71st.
On December 23, 2022 the low fell to about -5°F, and in the stretch ending January 2018 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 December 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 Nov 2 and the last spring freeze around Apr 4.
Rainfall is about average for Kentucky. The county gets about 48.6 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 11.8 days of an inch or more (64th of 120). Those downpours cluster in February, March and July, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 3.23 inches on October 29, 2020. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 4.94 inches (through September 29, 2024).
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 66 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 58% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Union among the oldest housing stocks of Kentucky's 120 counties.
In Union County 27% 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.
30% 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.
Manufactured and mobile homes make up 15% of the housing here. Water lines in the underbelly depend on intact skirting and working heat tape, and they're usually the first to freeze in a cold snap.
Beyond water
Union County averages 83 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in July. 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 expectHeating fuel matters for fire risk. In Union County it's 30% utility gas, 51% electric, 17% propane and under 1% wood. Propane heat is more common here than the state median. Have chimneys swept and fuel-burning appliances serviced each fall, and keep three feet clear around stoves and space heaters.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Union County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Union gets more pipe-freeze nights than any of its neighbors. All of its neighbors see more heavy-rain days. Crittenden County has the oldest housing nearby, with 60% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Union | Kentucky median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 27% | 18% | 18 of 120 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 58% | 44% | 8 of 120 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 12% | 25% | 120 of 120 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 15% | 19% | 72 of 120 |
| Vacant homes | 11% | 13% | 80 of 120 |
| Wood or propane heat | 17% | 13% | 48 of 120 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 18/yr | 20/yr | 71 of 120 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 12/yr | 12/yr | 64 of 120 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 66/yr | 73/yr | 94 of 120 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 83/yr | 59/yr | 13 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 Union County: freezing from December to February, heavy rain in February, March 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