Callaway County, Missouri · Fulton
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Callaway County averages 29 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly December to February, and 18% of its homes predate 1960.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 8.7 times a year here, most often in August. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Sewage backups in Callaway County spike on heavy-rain days, about 8.7 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Roof leaks here come from summer downpours and, with about 73 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
26% of occupied homes in Callaway County heat mainly with wood or propane, close to the Missouri county median of 24.5%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 68 times a year in Callaway County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
Callaway County covers 835 square miles of central Missouri, with about 44,741 residents and 18,645 homes. The county seat is Fulton, and Holts Summit, Auxvasse and New Bloomfield round out the largest towns. Much of its housing is recent, with a median build year of 1987.
38/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Callaway County ranks 97 of 114 Missouri counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Callaway County ranks highest compared with other Missouri counties.
Pipe-freeze risk in Callaway County sits near the middle of the state. From 2015–2024 it averaged 29 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 91 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 49th of 114 counties.
Cold snaps are the real risk. The worst in the record lasted 14 days below freezing (ending January 2018), and the low bottomed out near -13°F on January 14, 2024.
Expect the hardest freezes in January, inside a season that runs December to February. 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 28 and end around Apr 10.
Callaway gets fewer downpours than most Missouri counties, but they still fill basements. Of roughly 41.5 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 8.7 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 87th of 114. June, July and August see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 4.19 inches, April 30, 2017. The worst three-day stretch dropped 6.01 inches, ending June 27, 2021, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 73 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
42% of homes in Callaway County predate 1980, below the Missouri county median of 53%, which ranks 93rd of Missouri's 114 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.
28% 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.
14% of homes are manufactured or mobile homes, above the Missouri county median of 9.8%. Their water lines run under the floor behind the skirting, so a torn skirt or failed heat tape freezes them faster than lines in a site-built house.
Beyond water
About 68 nights a year in Callaway County stay at 65°F or warmer, a sign of muggy summer air (37th of 114 counties). July is the wettest month. 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, Callaway County homes break down as 20% utility gas, 54% electric, 21% propane and 4% 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 Callaway County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Audrain and Montgomery get more pipe-freeze nights than Callaway. Audrain County has the oldest housing nearby, with 65% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Callaway | Missouri median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 18% | 25% | 93 of 114 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 42% | 53% | 93 of 114 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 30% | 21% | 16 of 114 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 14% | 9.8% | 24 of 114 |
| Vacant homes | 12% | 15% | 84 of 114 |
| Wood or propane heat | 26% | 25% | 59 of 114 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 29/yr | 28/yr | 49 of 114 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 8.7/yr | 10/yr | 87 of 114 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 73/yr | 77/yr | 81 of 114 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 68/yr | 65/yr | 37 of 114 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Missouri county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Callaway County: freezing from December to February, heavy rain in June, 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