Van Wert County, Ohio · Van Wert
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With 50% of homes built before 1960 and about 34 hard-freeze nights a year, frozen and split pipes are a leading winter risk in the county.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 5 times a year here, most often in July. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Van Wert County gets about 5 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
In Van Wert County, 2.86 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
20% of occupied homes in Van Wert County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Ohio county median of 15.9%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 36 times a year in Van Wert County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
Van Wert County covers 409 square miles of western Ohio, with about 28,826 residents and 12,573 homes. The county seat is Van Wert, and Convoy, Ohio City and Middle Point round out the largest towns. Half the homes here were built before 1960, half after.
67/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Van Wert County ranks 6 of 88 Ohio counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Van Wert County ranks highest compared with other Ohio counties.
Van Wert County gets more hard-freeze nights than most of Ohio. From 2015–2024 it averaged 34 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 110 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 21st of 88 counties.
The longest cold spell was straight 19 days without the temperature rising above freezing, ending in March 2015. The coldest night reached about -14°F on January 31, 2019. 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 Oct 27 and end around Apr 24.
Van Wert gets fewer downpours than most Ohio counties, but they still fill basements. The county gets about 40.1 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 5 days of an inch or more (61st of 88). Those downpours cluster in May, June and July, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 2.86 inches on June 27, 2015. The worst three-day stretch dropped 4.69 inches, ending June 28, 2015, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 80 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 Van Wert among the oldest housing stocks of Ohio's 88 counties.
Before 1960 is when 50% of these homes went up. Galvanized supply lines and cast iron drains were standard then, and after 60-plus years both corrode and crack, often out of sight inside a wall or under a slab.
Beyond water
About 36 nights a year in Van Wert County stay at 65°F or warmer, a sign of muggy summer air (40th of 88 counties). May is the wettest month. 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 Van Wert County's occupied homes: 47% utility gas, 30% electric, 18% propane and 2% 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 Van Wert County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Auglaize and Mercer get more pipe-freeze nights than Van Wert. Allen County has the oldest housing nearby, with 73% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Van Wert | Ohio median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 50% | 37% | 5 of 88 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 70% | 61% | 20 of 88 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 11% | 17% | 76 of 88 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 4.4% | 5.9% | 54 of 88 |
| Vacant homes | 8.1% | 8.4% | 49 of 88 |
| Wood or propane heat | 20% | 16% | 32 of 88 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 34/yr | 31/yr | 21 of 88 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 5/yr | 5.7/yr | 61 of 88 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 80/yr | 82/yr | 55 of 88 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 36/yr | 35/yr | 40 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 Van Wert County: freezing from November to March, heavy rain in May, June 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