Alamance County, North Carolina · Graham
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Pipes freeze in Alamance County on about 6 nights a year, mostly December to February. Older homes, 21% of the stock here, are most at risk.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 10.8 times a year here, most often in September. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Sewage backups in Alamance County spike on heavy-rain days, about 10.8 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Roof leaks here come from summer downpours and, with about 63 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
7% of occupied homes in Alamance County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the North Carolina county median of 11.7%.
With 80 muggy nights a year, mold in Alamance County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
About 176,893 people live in Alamance County, 423 square miles in northern North Carolina, in roughly 77,073 homes. The county seat is Graham, and Burlington, Mebane and Elon round out the largest towns. Much of its housing is recent, with a median build year of 1988.
51/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Alamance County ranks 50 of 100 North Carolina counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Alamance County ranks highest compared with other North Carolina counties.
Pipe-freeze risk in Alamance County sits near the middle of the state. From 2015–2024 it averaged 6 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 65 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 43rd of 100 counties.
On February 20, 2015 the low fell to about 4°F, and in the stretch ending January 2018 the county went 7 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
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 7 and end around Mar 31.
Alamance gets fewer downpours than most North Carolina counties, but they still fill basements. About 10.8 days a year bring an inch or more (73rd of 100), most often in September, out of 48.8 inches of total precipitation. On September 17, 2018, 3.71 inches fell in a single day. The worst three-day stretch dropped 6.62 inches, ending September 17, 2018, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
About 63 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
Roughly 42% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Alamance near the middle of North Carolina's 100 counties.
Growth since 2000 added 32% 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.
27% 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.
Here 12% 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.
Renters occupy 35% 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
Alamance County averages 80 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in September. 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, Alamance County homes break down as 40% utility gas, 52% electric, 6% propane and under 1% wood. Most homes here heat with gas or electricity, so cooking and electrical faults are the likelier fire sources. Even a contained kitchen fire can send soot through the ductwork to every room.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Alamance County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Caswell, Guilford, Orange and Rockingham get more pipe-freeze nights than Alamance. Rockingham County has the oldest housing nearby, with 53% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Alamance | North Carolina median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 21% | 18% | 26 of 100 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 42% | 41% | 49 of 100 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 32% | 26% | 31 of 100 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 12% | 17% | 80 of 100 |
| Vacant homes | 9.1% | 13% | 83 of 100 |
| Wood or propane heat | 6.8% | 12% | 81 of 100 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 6/yr | 5/yr | 43 of 100 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 11/yr | 12/yr | 73 of 100 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 63/yr | 57/yr | 37 of 100 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 80/yr | 89/yr | 60 of 100 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest North Carolina county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Alamance County: freezing from December to February, heavy rain in April, May and September.
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