Clare County, Michigan · Harrison
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Pipes freeze in Clare County on about 61 nights a year, mostly November to April. Older homes, 22% of the stock here, are most at risk.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 3.4 times a year here, most often in October. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Clare County gets about 3.4 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 102 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
50% of occupied homes in Clare County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Michigan county median of 29%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 7 times a year in Clare County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
About 31,218 people live in Clare County, 564 square miles in central Lower Michigan, in roughly 22,008 homes. Harrison is the county seat; Clare and Farwell are the next largest communities. The county's median home was built in 1976.
35/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Clare County ranks 73 of 83 Michigan counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Clare County ranks highest compared with other Michigan counties.
For frozen pipes, Clare County is a typical Michigan county, which is still plenty. From 2015–2024 it averaged 61 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 154 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 33rd of 83 counties.
The longest cold spell was straight 27 days without the temperature rising above freezing, ending in March 2015. The coldest night reached about -26°F on February 20, 2015. Burst pipes usually show up when a spell like that breaks and the ice thaws.
Most freezing nights fall from November to April, 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 15 and the last spring freeze around May 12.
Clare gets fewer downpours than most Michigan counties, but they still fill basements. The county gets about 33.7 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 3.4 days of an inch or more (60th of 83). Those downpours cluster in June, August and October, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 3.27 inches on October 24, 2017. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 4.4 inches (through October 25, 2017).
About 102 days a year swing from below freezing at night to above freezing by day. Those freeze-thaw cycles feed ice dams on roofs, open cracks in foundations and driveways, and stress pipes that are already marginal.
Housing
Roughly 59% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Clare near the middle of Michigan's 83 counties.
Older and newer homes sit side by side here: 22% predate 1960 and 16% are from 2000 or later. Corroded pipe is the typical failure in the first group, burst supply hoses in the second.
26% 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 16% 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.
43% of homes were vacant at survey time. A leak in an empty rental or seasonal house can run for days before anyone notices, which is why those losses tend to be larger.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 7 times a year here, below the Michigan county median of 10. 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 expectMain heating fuel in Clare County's occupied homes: 38% utility gas, 7% electric, 38% propane and 12% wood. Wood and propane heat are above the Michigan 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 Clare County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Missaukee and Osceola get more pipe-freeze nights than Clare. Its housing is the oldest in the area by share of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Clare | Michigan median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 22% | 32% | 72 of 83 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 59% | 58% | 38 of 83 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 16% | 16% | 46 of 83 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 16% | 7.3% | 4 of 83 |
| Vacant homes | 43% | 20% | 9 of 83 |
| Wood or propane heat | 50% | 29% | 11 of 83 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 61/yr | 54/yr | 33 of 83 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 3.4/yr | 3.9/yr | 60 of 83 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 102/yr | 95/yr | 16 of 83 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 7/yr | 10/yr | 50 of 83 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Michigan county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Clare County: freezing from November to April, heavy rain in June, August and October.
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