Hocking County, Ohio · Logan
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Hocking County averages 28 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly November to March, and 26% of its homes predate 1960.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 6.3 times a year here, most often in March. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Hocking County gets about 6.3 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
Roof leaks here come from summer downpours and, with about 82 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
22% of occupied homes in Hocking County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Ohio county median of 15.9%.
About 33 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
Hocking County covers 421 square miles of southern Ohio, with about 27,799 residents and 13,013 homes. Logan is the county seat; West Logan, Hide-A-Way Hills and Laurelville are the next largest communities. The county's median home was built in 1981.
34/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Hocking County ranks 81 of 88 Ohio counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Hocking County ranks highest compared with other Ohio counties.
Hocking County is milder than most of Ohio, but not mild enough to skip winterizing. It averaged 101 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 28 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 88 Ohio counties that's 63rd.
On February 21, 2015 the low fell to about -12°F, and in the stretch ending January 2018 the county went 13 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
Expect the hardest freezes in January, inside a season that runs November to March. That's when an outdoor spigot left connected to a hose, or a pipe in a crawl space, is most likely to split.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Oct 26 and the last spring freeze around Apr 20.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Ohio. The county gets about 43.1 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 6.3 days of an inch or more (29th of 88). Those downpours cluster in March, April and June, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 2.77 inches on November 6, 2017. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 3.81 inches (through September 10, 2018).
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 82 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 49% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Hocking among the newer housing stocks of Ohio's 88 counties.
Older and newer homes sit side by side here: 26% predate 1960 and 20% are from 2000 or later. Corroded pipe is the typical failure in the first group, burst supply hoses in the second.
About 31% 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.
Here 17% 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.
The Census counted 11% of homes as vacant, above the Ohio county median of 8.4%. Empty houses are where a small leak turns into a large claim, because nobody is there to hear it.
Beyond water
Hocking County averages 33 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in June. 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 expectMain heating fuel in Hocking County's occupied homes: 34% utility gas, 39% electric, 15% propane and 7% wood. Wood heat is more common here than in most Ohio 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 Hocking County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Perry gets more pipe-freeze nights than Hocking. Ross County has the oldest housing nearby, with 57% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Hocking | Ohio median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 26% | 37% | 74 of 88 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 49% | 61% | 77 of 88 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 20% | 17% | 25 of 88 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 17% | 5.9% | 9 of 88 |
| Vacant homes | 11% | 8.4% | 21 of 88 |
| Wood or propane heat | 22% | 16% | 25 of 88 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 28/yr | 31/yr | 63 of 88 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 6.3/yr | 5.7/yr | 29 of 88 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 82/yr | 82/yr | 44 of 88 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 33/yr | 35/yr | 51 of 88 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Ohio county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Hocking County: freezing from November to March, heavy rain in March, April and June.
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