Monroe County, New York · Rochester
Water spreading, a burst pipe, sewage, mold or smoke? Call to be connected with a restoration company that serves Rochester, Irondequoit and Brighton. Start the steps below while you wait.
Answered 24/7 by a participating local provider. We're a referral service and don't do the work ourselves. How it works
Start here
Pick the closest match. These steps limit the damage and protect your insurance claim. Skip anything that isn't safe.
Monroe County averages 43 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly November to March, and 43% of its homes predate 1960.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 3.9 times a year here, most often in June. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Monroe County gets about 3.9 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
In Monroe County, 2.2 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
3% of occupied homes in Monroe County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the New York county median of 19%.
About 25 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
Monroe County covers 657 square miles of western New York, with about 753,753 residents and 339,430 homes. Rochester is the county seat; Irondequoit, Brighton and Greece are the next largest communities. Half the homes here were built before 1965, half after.
32/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Monroe County ranks 53 of 57 New York counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Monroe County ranks highest compared with other New York counties.
Winters here are on the gentler end for New York, and pipes still freeze. In the 2015–2024 record the county logged about 43 nights a year at or below 20°F (49th of 57) and 119 below freezing. Twenty degrees is roughly where uninsulated pipes start to freeze.
The longest cold spell was straight 26 days without the temperature rising above freezing, ending in March 2015. The coldest night reached about -11°F on February 21, 2015. Burst pipes usually show up when a spell like that breaks and the ice thaws.
The freeze season here runs November to March, with January the coldest. If you travel then, leave the thermostat at 55°F or above and open sink cabinets on outside walls.
Freezing nights typically start around Nov 1 and end around Apr 29.
Monroe gets fewer downpours than most New York counties, but they still fill basements. Of roughly 34.9 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 3.9 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 49th of 57. June, September and October see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 2.2 inches, November 12, 2022. The worst three-day stretch dropped 3.42 inches, ending October 23, 2016, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 81 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
Roughly 70% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Monroe near the middle of New York's 57 counties.
The mix runs from 43% built before 1960 to 12% built since 2000, so older neighborhoods bring aging pipe while newer subdivisions bring failed appliance lines and water heaters.
Renters occupy 36% of homes. If you rent, the building is usually the landlord's to repair, but your belongings are only covered by renters insurance.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 25 times a year here, above the New York county median of 12. Mold grows when indoor humidity stays above about 60%, the EPA's ceiling. A basement dehumidifier set to 50% and drying anything wet within 24 to 48 hours prevents most problems.
Mold remediation: what to expectHeating fuel matters for fire risk. In Monroe County it's 75% utility gas, 20% electric, 2% propane and under 1% wood. Heating equipment, cooking and electrical failures cause most home fires nationally. Even a small kitchen fire can leave soot through the whole house, because smoke follows air currents into closets, ducts and attic space.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Monroe 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 Monroe. It also has the most heavy-rain days in its area. Genesee County has the oldest housing nearby, with 77% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Monroe | New York median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 43% | 45% | 34 of 57 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 70% | 67% | 20 of 57 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 12% | 13% | 33 of 57 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 0.9% | 7.6% | 52 of 57 |
| Vacant homes | 6.2% | 14% | 51 of 57 |
| Wood or propane heat | 2.8% | 19% | 54 of 57 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 43/yr | 55/yr | 49 of 57 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 3.9/yr | 6/yr | 49 of 57 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 81/yr | 101/yr | 54 of 57 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 25/yr | 12/yr | 10 of 57 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest New York county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Monroe County: freezing from November to March, heavy rain in June, September 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