Osage County, Missouri · Linn
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Pipes freeze in Osage County on about 26 nights a year, mostly December to February. Older homes, 25% of the stock here, are most at risk.
Basements flood here mostly in August. Osage County averages 9.6 days a year with an inch of rain or more.
Sewage backups in Osage County spike on heavy-rain days, about 9.6 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Osage County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 4.2 inches, and about 71 freeze-thaw days a year mean ice dams in some winters.
49% of occupied homes in Osage County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Missouri county median of 24.5%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 70 times a year in Osage County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
Osage County covers 607 square miles of central Missouri, with about 13,402 residents and 6,501 homes. Linn is the county seat; Westphalia, Freeburg and Chamois are the next largest communities. The county's median home was built in 1982.
47/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Osage County ranks 69 of 114 Missouri counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Osage County ranks highest compared with other Missouri counties.
For frozen pipes, Osage County is a typical Missouri county, which is still plenty. In the 2015–2024 record the county logged about 26 nights a year at or below 20°F (62nd of 114) and 87 below freezing. Twenty degrees is roughly where uninsulated pipes start to freeze.
On January 14, 2024 the low fell to about -9°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.
The freeze season here runs December to February, with January the coldest. If you travel then, leave the thermostat at 55°F or above and open sink cabinets on outside walls.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Oct 28 and the last spring freeze around Apr 10.
Rainfall is about average for Missouri. The county gets about 43.2 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 9.6 days of an inch or more (70th of 114). Those downpours cluster in June, July and August, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 4.2 inches on December 27, 2015. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 7.23 inches (through December 29, 2015).
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 71 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 48% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Osage near the middle of Missouri's 114 counties.
Growth since 2000 added 28% 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 24% 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.
19% of homes were vacant at survey time. A leak in an empty rental or seasonal house can run for days before anyone notices, which is why those losses tend to be larger.
Beyond water
About 70 nights a year in Osage County stay at 65°F or warmer, a sign of muggy summer air (32nd of 114 counties). May is the wettest month. 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, Osage County homes break down as 3% utility gas, 43% electric, 32% propane and 17% wood. Wood and propane heat are more common here than in most Missouri counties. Heating equipment is one of the leading causes of home fires nationally, and the NFPA recommends having chimneys and vents inspected every year.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Osage County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Callaway, Gasconade and Montgomery get more pipe-freeze nights than Osage. Gasconade County has the oldest housing nearby, with 57% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Osage | Missouri median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 25% | 25% | 65 of 114 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 48% | 53% | 73 of 114 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 28% | 21% | 20 of 114 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 6.5% | 9.8% | 89 of 114 |
| Vacant homes | 19% | 15% | 42 of 114 |
| Wood or propane heat | 49% | 25% | 8 of 114 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 26/yr | 28/yr | 62 of 114 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 9.6/yr | 10/yr | 70 of 114 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 71/yr | 77/yr | 95 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 Osage 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