Moniteau County, Missouri · California
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Moniteau County averages 26 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly December to February, and 25% of its homes predate 1960.
July brings the most downpours to Moniteau County, part of 8.5 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Moniteau County gets about 8.5 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
In Moniteau County, 4.23 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
28% of occupied homes in Moniteau County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Missouri county median of 24.5%.
With 70 muggy nights a year, mold in Moniteau County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
With 6,175 homes and around 15,262 residents, Moniteau County is 415 square miles of central Missouri. Besides California, the county seat, the biggest communities are Tipton, Clarksburg and Jamestown. Half the homes here were built before 1979, half after.
42/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Moniteau County ranks 84 of 114 Missouri counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Moniteau County ranks highest compared with other Missouri counties.
Pipe-freeze risk in Moniteau County sits near the middle of the state. From 2015–2024 it averaged 26 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 87 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 62nd of 114 counties.
Cold snaps are the real risk. The worst in the record lasted 13 days below freezing (ending February 2021), and the low bottomed out near -10°F on January 14, 2024.
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.
Freezing nights typically start around Nov 1 and end around Apr 10.
Moniteau gets fewer downpours than most Missouri counties, but they still fill basements. Of roughly 40.5 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 8.5 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 96th of 114. June, July and October see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 4.23 inches, April 30, 2017. The worst three-day stretch dropped 5.43 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 70 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 52% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Moniteau near the middle of Missouri's 114 counties.
The mix runs from 25% built before 1960 to 22% built since 2000, so older neighborhoods bring aging pipe while newer subdivisions bring failed appliance lines and water heaters.
26% 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.
9% of homes are manufactured or mobile homes, close to 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
Moniteau County averages 70 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in May. 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 expectBy main heating fuel, Moniteau County homes break down as 41% utility gas, 29% electric, 18% propane and 11% wood. Wood 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 Moniteau County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Boone, Cooper and Morgan get more pipe-freeze nights than Moniteau. All of its neighbors see more heavy-rain days. Cooper County has the oldest housing nearby, with 59% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Moniteau | Missouri median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 25% | 25% | 59 of 114 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 52% | 53% | 61 of 114 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 22% | 21% | 52 of 114 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 8.8% | 9.8% | 70 of 114 |
| Vacant homes | 7.2% | 15% | 102 of 114 |
| Wood or propane heat | 28% | 25% | 50 of 114 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 26/yr | 28/yr | 62 of 114 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 8.5/yr | 10/yr | 96 of 114 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 70/yr | 77/yr | 99 of 114 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 70/yr | 65/yr | 32 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 Moniteau County: freezing from December to February, heavy rain in June, July and October.
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