Murray County, Minnesota · Slayton
Water spreading, a burst pipe, sewage, mold or smoke? Call to be connected with a restoration company that serves Slayton, Fulda and The Lakes. Start the steps below while you wait.
Answered 24/7 by a participating local provider. We're a referral service and don't do the work ourselves. How it works
Start here
Pick the closest match. These steps limit the damage and protect your insurance claim. Skip anything that isn't safe.
Murray County averages 85 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly November to April, and 47% of its homes predate 1960.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 5.7 times a year here, most often in July. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Murray County gets about 5.7 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
In Murray County, 3.31 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
44% of occupied homes in Murray County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Minnesota county median of 30%.
With 16 muggy nights a year, mold in Murray County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
Murray County covers 705 square miles of southwest Minnesota, with about 8,097 residents and 4,401 homes. Slayton is the county seat; Fulda, The Lakes and Chandler are the next largest communities. Half the homes here were built before 1963, half after.
61/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Murray County ranks 19 of 87 Minnesota counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Murray County ranks highest compared with other Minnesota counties.
Pipe-freeze risk in Murray County sits near the middle of the state. From 2015–2024 it averaged 85 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 159 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 52nd of 87 counties.
The longest cold spell was straight 36 days without the temperature rising above freezing, ending in March 2019. The coldest night reached about -28°F on January 31, 2019. Burst pipes usually show up when a spell like that breaks and the ice thaws.
Expect the hardest freezes in January, inside a season that runs November to April. That's when an outdoor spigot left connected to a hose, or a pipe in a crawl space, is most likely to split.
Freezing nights typically start around Oct 9 and end around May 2.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Minnesota. About 5.7 days a year bring an inch or more (29th of 87), most often in July, out of 31.1 inches of total precipitation. On June 21, 2018, 3.31 inches fell in a single day. The worst three-day stretch dropped 4.96 inches, ending September 12, 2019, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 86 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
72% of homes in Murray County predate 1980, above the Minnesota county median of 58.4%, which ranks 17th of Minnesota's 87 counties.
Before 1960 is when 47% 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.
With 18% of homes empty at survey time, landlords and seasonal owners should shut off the main or schedule checks in winter. An unheated vacant house is also where many policies limit freeze coverage.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 16 times a year here, above the Minnesota county median of 13. 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 Murray County's occupied homes: 34% utility gas, 11% electric, 42% propane and 2% 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 Murray County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Lyon and Pipestone get more pipe-freeze nights than Murray. Pipestone County has the oldest housing nearby, with 80% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Murray | Minnesota median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 47% | 34% | 20 of 87 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 72% | 58% | 17 of 87 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 11% | 21% | 73 of 87 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 3% | 3.8% | 52 of 87 |
| Vacant homes | 18% | 11% | 24 of 87 |
| Wood or propane heat | 44% | 30% | 16 of 87 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 85/yr | 89/yr | 52 of 87 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 5.7/yr | 5.3/yr | 29 of 87 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 86/yr | 86/yr | 44 of 87 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 16/yr | 13/yr | 32 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 Murray County: freezing from November to April, heavy rain in May, June 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