Frederick County, Maryland · Frederick
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Pipes freeze in Frederick County on about 19 nights a year, mostly December to March. Older homes, 17% of the stock here, are most at risk.
Basements flood here mostly in July. Frederick County averages 8.3 days a year with an inch of rain or more.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Frederick County gets about 8.3 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
Roof leaks here come from summer downpours and, with about 81 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
6% of occupied homes in Frederick County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the Maryland county median of 9.3%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 49 times a year in Frederick County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
About 287,048 people live in Frederick County, 661 square miles in northern Maryland, in roughly 108,924 homes. Frederick is the county seat; Ballenger Creek, Linganore and Urbana are the next largest communities. Much of its housing is recent, with a median build year of 1991.
41/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Frederick County ranks 19 of 23 Maryland counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Frederick County ranks highest compared with other Maryland counties.
Frederick is on the colder side of Maryland for pipes. It averaged 92 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 19 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 23 Maryland counties that's 5th.
On February 24, 2015 the low fell to about -1°F, and in the stretch ending January 2018 the county went 12 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
Most freezing nights fall from December to March, 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 1 and the last spring freeze around Apr 7.
Frederick gets fewer downpours than most Maryland counties, but they still fill basements. Of roughly 44.2 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 8.3 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 19th of 23. June, July and September see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 3.93 inches, July 22, 2018. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 5.61 inches (through July 24, 2018).
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 81 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
35% of homes in Frederick County predate 1980, below the Maryland county median of 43.9%, which ranks 18th of Maryland's 23 counties.
32% of homes were built in 2000 or later, more than in most of Maryland. Newer plumbing rarely corrodes, so damage here tends to come from appliance supply lines, water heaters, sump pumps and storms.
The 1980s and 1990s account for 33% of the county's homes. If yours is from those decades, look under the sinks and at the water heater for gray plastic pipe stamped PB, which is polybutylene and leak-prone.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 49 times a year here, below the Maryland county median of 76. 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, Frederick County homes break down as 34% utility gas, 51% electric, 4% 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 Frederick County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Carroll and Washington get more pipe-freeze nights than Frederick. Washington County has the oldest housing nearby, with 57% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Frederick | Maryland median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 17% | 20% | 16 of 23 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 35% | 44% | 18 of 23 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 32% | 23% | 3 of 23 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 0.6% | 2.6% | 21 of 23 |
| Vacant homes | 3.9% | 7.7% | 20 of 23 |
| Wood or propane heat | 5.7% | 9.3% | 18 of 23 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 19/yr | 12/yr | 5 of 23 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 8.3/yr | 9.3/yr | 19 of 23 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 81/yr | 70/yr | 5 of 23 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 49/yr | 76/yr | 19 of 23 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Maryland county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Frederick County: freezing from December to March, heavy rain in June, 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