Scioto County, Ohio · Portsmouth
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Pipes freeze in Scioto County on about 25 nights a year, mostly November to March. Older homes, 42% of the stock here, are most at risk.
February brings the most downpours to Scioto County, part of 7.1 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
Sewage backups in Scioto County spike on heavy-rain days, about 7.1 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Scioto County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 2.96 inches, and about 83 freeze-thaw days a year mean ice dams in some winters.
20% of occupied homes in Scioto County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Ohio county median of 15.9%.
About 42 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
With 33,070 homes and around 72,627 residents, Scioto County is 610 square miles of southern Ohio. Besides Portsmouth, the county seat, the biggest communities are Wheelersburg, West Portsmouth and New Boston. The county's median home was built in 1968.
56/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Scioto County ranks 29 of 88 Ohio counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Scioto County ranks highest compared with other Ohio counties.
Scioto County is milder than most of Ohio, but not mild enough to skip winterizing. From 2015–2024 it averaged 25 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 97 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 80th of 88 counties.
The longest cold spell was straight 13 days without the temperature rising above freezing, ending in January 2018. The coldest night reached about -14°F on February 20, 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.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Oct 28 and the last spring freeze around Apr 20.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Ohio. The county gets about 45.1 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 7.1 days of an inch or more (15th of 88). Those downpours cluster in February, April and July, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 2.96 inches on September 28, 2024. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 5.26 inches (through September 10, 2018).
About 83 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 66% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Scioto near the middle of Ohio's 88 counties.
In Scioto County 42% of homes are older than 1960. If yours is one of them and the plumbing has never been replaced, expect galvanized steel supply pipe and cast iron drain lines, the two materials most likely to fail quietly.
Manufactured and mobile homes make up 15% of the housing here. Water lines in the underbelly depend on intact skirting and working heat tape, and they're usually the first to freeze in a cold snap.
13% 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
Scioto County averages 42 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in July. 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 expectBy main heating fuel, Scioto County homes break down as 37% utility gas, 40% electric, 17% propane and 3% wood. Propane 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 Scioto County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Adams and Jackson get more pipe-freeze nights than Scioto. Its housing is the oldest in the area by share of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Scioto | Ohio median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 42% | 37% | 28 of 88 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 66% | 61% | 32 of 88 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 13% | 17% | 61 of 88 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 15% | 5.9% | 14 of 88 |
| Vacant homes | 13% | 8.4% | 17 of 88 |
| Wood or propane heat | 20% | 16% | 32 of 88 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 25/yr | 31/yr | 80 of 88 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 7.1/yr | 5.7/yr | 15 of 88 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 83/yr | 82/yr | 38 of 88 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 42/yr | 35/yr | 16 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 Scioto County: freezing from November to March, heavy rain in February, April 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