Knox County, Nebraska · Center
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Knox County averages 69 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly November to March, and 44% of its homes predate 1960.
Basements flood here mostly in June. Knox County averages 4.6 days a year with an inch of rain or more.
Sewage backups in Knox County spike on heavy-rain days, about 4.6 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Roof leaks here come from summer downpours and, with about 102 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
31% of occupied homes in Knox County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Nebraska county median of 19.4%.
About 27 nights a year here stay at 65°F or warmer, so basements and crawl spaces can grow mold even without a leak.
Local risk profile
Knox County covers 1,108 square miles of northeast Nebraska, with about 8,363 residents and 4,521 homes. The county seat is Center, and Creighton, Bloomfield and Crofton round out the largest towns. Half the homes here were built before 1967, half after.
50/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Knox County ranks 47 of 93 Nebraska counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Knox County ranks highest compared with other Nebraska counties.
Knox County gets more hard-freeze nights than most of Nebraska. In the 2015–2024 record the county logged about 69 nights a year at or below 20°F (31st of 93) and 147 below freezing. Twenty degrees is roughly where uninsulated pipes start to freeze.
Cold snaps are the real risk. The worst in the record lasted 22 days below freezing (ending March 2019), and the low bottomed out near -28°F on February 15, 2021.
Most freezing nights fall from November to March, 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 Oct 14 and end around Apr 29.
Rainfall is about average for Nebraska. Of roughly 26.6 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 4.6 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 53rd of 93. June, July and October see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 2.42 inches, July 13, 2018. The worst three-day stretch dropped 3.67 inches, ending October 14, 2023, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
About 102 days a year swing from below freezing at night to above freezing by day. Those freeze-thaw cycles feed ice dams on roofs, open cracks in foundations and driveways, and stress pipes that are already marginal.
Housing
Nebraska's 93 counties range widely in housing age; Knox ranks 61st, with 69% of its homes built before 1980.
Housing age is mixed: 44% of homes are pre-1960 and 13% are 2000 or newer. Ask any plumber which era your house is from and you'll know which failures to watch for.
Here 8% 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.
24% 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
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 27 times a year here, close to the Nebraska county median of 27. 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 Knox County it's 27% utility gas, 40% electric, 28% propane and 3% wood. Wood and propane heat are more common here than in most Nebraska 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 Knox 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 Knox. Boyd County has the oldest housing nearby, with 80% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Knox | Nebraska median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 44% | 49% | 55 of 93 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 69% | 73% | 61 of 93 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 13% | 12% | 43 of 93 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 8.3% | 5% | 19 of 93 |
| Vacant homes | 24% | 14% | 17 of 93 |
| Wood or propane heat | 31% | 19% | 22 of 93 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 69/yr | 64/yr | 31 of 93 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 4.6/yr | 5.1/yr | 53 of 93 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 102/yr | 112/yr | 64 of 93 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 27/yr | 27/yr | 46 of 93 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Nebraska county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Knox County: freezing from November to March, 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