Benton County, Minnesota · Foley
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With 18% 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.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 5.3 times a year here, most often in August. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Benton County gets about 5.3 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
In Benton County, 2.78 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
18% of occupied homes in Benton County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the Minnesota county median of 30%.
About 12 nights a year here stay at 65°F or warmer, so basements and crawl spaces can grow mold even without a leak.
Local risk profile
Benton County covers 408 square miles of central Minnesota, with about 41,593 residents and 17,608 homes. The county seat is Foley, and Sauk Rapids, Rice and Gilman round out the largest towns. Much of its housing is recent, with a median build year of 1986.
40/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Benton County ranks 68 of 87 Minnesota counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Benton County ranks highest compared with other Minnesota counties.
Pipe-freeze risk in Benton County sits near the middle of the state. It averaged 162 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 91 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 87 Minnesota counties that's 40th.
The longest cold spell was straight 33 days without the temperature rising above freezing, ending in March 2019. The coldest night reached about -34°F on January 31, 2019. Burst pipes usually show up when a spell like that breaks and the ice thaws.
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.
Freezing nights typically start around Oct 11 and end around May 3.
Rainfall is about average for Minnesota. Of roughly 30.7 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 5.3 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 43rd of 87. May, July and August see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 2.78 inches, July 12, 2016. The worst three-day stretch dropped 4.43 inches, ending July 12, 2016, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
About 86 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 42% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Benton among the newer housing stocks of Minnesota's 87 counties.
Growth since 2000 added 30% of today's homes. In houses that new, the weak points are washing machine hoses, ice maker lines, water heaters and sump pumps rather than the pipes in the walls.
About 28% of homes went up between 1980 and 1999. Some houses from the late 1970s to the mid-1990s were plumbed with polybutylene, a gray plastic pipe known for failing at fittings. A plumber can tell you in a few minutes whether you have it.
Renters occupy 33% of homes. If you rent, the building is usually the landlord's to repair, but your belongings are only covered by renters insurance.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 12 times a year here, close to the Minnesota county median of 13. 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 Benton County it's 52% utility gas, 25% electric, 14% propane and 3% wood. Wood heat is above the Minnesota 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 Benton County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Mille Lacs, Morrison and Stearns get more pipe-freeze nights than Benton. Morrison County has the oldest housing nearby, with 54% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Benton | Minnesota median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 18% | 34% | 75 of 87 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 42% | 58% | 72 of 87 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 30% | 21% | 14 of 87 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 5.5% | 3.8% | 24 of 87 |
| Vacant homes | 5% | 11% | 77 of 87 |
| Wood or propane heat | 18% | 30% | 71 of 87 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 91/yr | 89/yr | 40 of 87 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 5.3/yr | 5.3/yr | 43 of 87 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 86/yr | 86/yr | 44 of 87 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 12/yr | 13/yr | 45 of 87 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Minnesota county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Benton County: freezing from November to April, heavy rain in May, July and August.
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