Cedar County, Missouri · Stockton
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With 20% of homes built before 1960 and about 21 hard-freeze nights a year, frozen and split pipes are a leading winter risk in the county.
Basements flood here mostly in May. Cedar County averages 12 days a year with an inch of rain or more.
Sewage backups in Cedar County spike on heavy-rain days, about 12 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Cedar County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 4.18 inches, and about 70 freeze-thaw days a year mean ice dams in some winters.
23% of occupied homes in Cedar County heat mainly with wood or propane, close to the Missouri county median of 24.5%.
With 75 muggy nights a year, mold in Cedar County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
Cedar County covers 474 square miles of western Missouri, with about 14,615 residents and 6,946 homes. Besides Stockton, the county seat, the biggest communities are El Dorado Springs, Jerico Springs and Umber View Heights. The county's median home was built in 1980.
45/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Cedar County ranks 75 of 114 Missouri counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Cedar County ranks highest compared with other Missouri counties.
Cedar County is milder than most of Missouri, but not mild enough to skip winterizing. It averaged 83 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 21 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 114 Missouri counties that's 91st.
On February 16, 2021 the low fell to about -14°F, and in the stretch ending February 2021 the county went 13 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
Most freezing nights fall from December to February, 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 31 and the last spring freeze around Apr 8.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Missouri. Of roughly 44.9 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 12 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 31st of 114. April, May and August see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 4.18 inches, December 27, 2015. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 6.5 inches (through December 29, 2015).
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 70 days a year. Each cycle melts and refreezes water at roof edges and in foundation cracks, which is how ice dams and basement seepage get started.
Housing
50% of homes in Cedar County predate 1980, close to the Missouri county median of 53%, which ranks 66th of Missouri's 114 counties.
Growth since 2000 added 27% 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.
The 1980s and 1990s account for 22% of the county's homes. If yours is from those decades, look under the sinks and at the water heater for gray plastic pipe stamped PB, which is polybutylene and leak-prone.
Here 16% of housing is manufactured homes. Check the skirting and the heat tape on the main water line every fall, because that one exposed line is what freezes.
Beyond water
About 75 nights a year in Cedar County stay at 65°F or warmer, a sign of muggy summer air (14th of 114 counties). May is the wettest month. The EPA recommends keeping indoor humidity below 60%, ideally 30 to 50%. Basements can pass 60% on their own in summer, so a dehumidifier matters even without a leak, and anything wet should be dried within 24 to 48 hours.
Mold remediation: what to expectBy main heating fuel, Cedar County homes break down as 33% utility gas, 42% electric, 15% propane and 8% wood. Wood heat is above the Missouri 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 Cedar County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Every neighboring county gets more pipe-freeze nights than Cedar. Dade County has the oldest housing nearby, with 61% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Cedar | Missouri median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 20% | 25% | 83 of 114 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 50% | 53% | 66 of 114 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 27% | 21% | 25 of 114 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 16% | 9.8% | 16 of 114 |
| Vacant homes | 17% | 15% | 50 of 114 |
| Wood or propane heat | 23% | 25% | 65 of 114 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 21/yr | 28/yr | 91 of 114 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 12/yr | 10/yr | 31 of 114 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 70/yr | 77/yr | 99 of 114 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 75/yr | 65/yr | 14 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 Cedar County: freezing from December to February, heavy rain in April, May 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