Keweenaw County, Michigan · Eagle River
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With 50% of homes built before 1960 and about 91 hard-freeze nights a year, frozen and split pipes are a leading winter risk in the county.
June brings the most downpours to Keweenaw County, part of 2.5 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
50% 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 Keweenaw County, 1.74 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
58% of occupied homes in Keweenaw 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 once a year in Keweenaw County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
About 2,133 people live in Keweenaw County, 540 square miles in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, in roughly 2,305 homes. The county seat is Eagle River, and Mohawk, Copper Harbor and Eagle Harbor round out the largest towns. The county's median home was built in 1961.
59/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Keweenaw County ranks 22 of 83 Michigan counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Keweenaw County ranks highest compared with other Michigan counties.
Keweenaw is on the colder side of Michigan for pipes. From 2015–2024 it averaged 91 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 171 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 8th of 83 counties.
On January 28, 2019 the low fell to about -21°F, and in the stretch ending February 2019 the county went 45 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
The freeze season here runs November to April, with January the coldest. If you travel then, leave the thermostat at 55°F or above and open sink cabinets on outside walls.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Oct 18 and the last spring freeze around May 17.
Keweenaw gets fewer downpours than most Michigan counties, but they still fill basements. Of roughly 32.8 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 2.5 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 78th of 83. June, August and September see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 1.74 inches, October 10, 2018. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 3.57 inches (through October 11, 2018).
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 91 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
Roughly 66% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Keweenaw among the oldest housing stocks of Michigan's 83 counties.
Before 1960 is when 50% of these homes went up. Galvanized supply lines and cast iron drains were standard then, and after 60-plus years both corrode and crack, often out of sight inside a wall or under a slab.
51% 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
Keweenaw County averages 1 warm, muggy night a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in August. 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, Keweenaw County homes break down as 31% utility gas, 5% electric, 45% propane and 13% wood. Wood and propane heat are more common here than in most Michigan counties. Heating equipment is one of the leading causes of home fires nationally, and the NFPA recommends having chimneys and vents inspected every year.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Keweenaw County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Houghton, Marquette and Ontonagon get more pipe-freeze nights than Keweenaw. All of its neighbors see more heavy-rain days. Ontonagon County has the oldest housing nearby, with 71% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Keweenaw | Michigan median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 50% | 32% | 4 of 83 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 66% | 58% | 21 of 83 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 15% | 16% | 52 of 83 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 1.8% | 7.3% | 82 of 83 |
| Vacant homes | 51% | 20% | 4 of 83 |
| Wood or propane heat | 58% | 29% | 3 of 83 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 91/yr | 54/yr | 8 of 83 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 2.5/yr | 3.9/yr | 78 of 83 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 91/yr | 95/yr | 53 of 83 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 1/yr | 10/yr | 77 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 Keweenaw County: freezing from November to April, heavy rain in June, August 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