St. Clair County, Missouri · Osceola
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Pipes freeze in St. Clair County on about 23 nights a year, mostly December to February. Older homes, 24% of the stock here, are most at risk.
May brings the most downpours to St. Clair County, part of 12.2 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
Sewage backups in St. Clair County spike on heavy-rain days, about 12.2 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
St. Clair County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 3.94 inches, and about 74 freeze-thaw days a year mean ice dams in some winters.
53% of occupied homes in St. Clair County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Missouri county median of 24.5%.
With 74 muggy nights a year, mold in St. Clair County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
About 9,587 people live in St. Clair County, 675 square miles in western Missouri, in roughly 5,290 homes. The county seat is Osceola, and Appleton City, Lowry City and Roscoe round out the largest towns. The county's median home was built in 1979.
53/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated St. Clair County ranks 51 of 114 Missouri counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where St. Clair County ranks highest compared with other Missouri counties.
St. Clair County is milder than most of Missouri, but not mild enough to skip winterizing. In the 2015–2024 record the county logged about 23 nights a year at or below 20°F (79th of 114) and 88 below freezing. Twenty degrees is roughly where uninsulated pipes start to freeze.
Cold snaps are the real risk. The worst in the record lasted 14 days below freezing (ending February 2021), and the low bottomed out near -14°F on February 16, 2021.
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 28 and the last spring freeze around Apr 6.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Missouri. Of roughly 43.7 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 12.2 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 26th of 114. May, June and July see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 3.94 inches, April 30, 2017. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 5.24 inches (through May 23, 2019).
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 74 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
Missouri's 114 counties range widely in housing age; St. Clair ranks 57th, with 53% of its homes built before 1980.
The mix runs from 24% built before 1960 to 19% built since 2000, so older neighborhoods bring aging pipe while newer subdivisions bring failed appliance lines and water heaters.
The 1980s and 1990s account for 27% 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.
20% 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.
With 23% 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
About 74 nights a year in St. Clair County stay at 65°F or warmer, a sign of muggy summer air (18th 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 expectHeating fuel matters for fire risk. In St. Clair County it's 6% utility gas, 41% electric, 34% propane and 19% wood. Wood and propane heat are 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 St. Clair County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Bates, Benton, Henry and Hickory get more pipe-freeze nights than St. Clair. Bates County has the oldest housing nearby, with 56% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | St. Clair | Missouri median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 24% | 25% | 67 of 114 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 53% | 53% | 57 of 114 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 19% | 21% | 71 of 114 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 20% | 9.8% | 8 of 114 |
| Vacant homes | 23% | 15% | 23 of 114 |
| Wood or propane heat | 53% | 25% | 5 of 114 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 23/yr | 28/yr | 79 of 114 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 12/yr | 10/yr | 26 of 114 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 74/yr | 77/yr | 77 of 114 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 74/yr | 65/yr | 18 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 St. Clair County: freezing from December to February, 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