Carter County, Oklahoma · Ardmore
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Carter County averages 7 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly December to January, and 31% of its homes predate 1960.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 11.8 times a year here, most often in May. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
31% of homes here predate 1960, when clay and cast iron sewer laterals were standard. Roots and cracks in those lines are a common cause of backups.
In Carter County, 8.07 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
4% of occupied homes in Carter County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the Oklahoma county median of 12.5%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 113 times a year in Carter County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
Carter County covers 822 square miles of southeast Oklahoma, with about 48,555 residents and 21,624 homes. Besides Ardmore, the county seat, the biggest communities are Lone Grove, Healdton and Wilson. The county's median home was built in 1978.
51/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Carter County ranks 33 of 77 Oklahoma counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Carter County ranks highest compared with other Oklahoma counties.
Carter County is milder than most of Oklahoma, but not mild enough to skip winterizing. From 2015–2024 it averaged 7 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 52 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 68th of 77 counties.
Cold snaps are the real risk. The worst in the record lasted 10 days below freezing (ending February 2021), and the low bottomed out near -7°F on February 16, 2021.
Most freezing nights fall from December to January, 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.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Nov 12 and the last spring freeze around Mar 20.
Rainfall is about average for Oklahoma. Of roughly 41.5 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 11.8 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 30th of 77. May, June and October see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 8.07 inches, June 18, 2015. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 9.89 inches (through June 18, 2015).
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 48 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 54% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Carter near the middle of Oklahoma's 77 counties.
In Carter County 31% 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.
23% 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.
Manufactured and mobile homes make up 12% 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.
Renters occupy 33% 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
Carter County averages 113 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in May. 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 expectMain heating fuel in Carter County's occupied homes: 32% utility gas, 62% electric, 3% propane and 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 Carter County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Garvin, Murray and Stephens get more pipe-freeze nights than Carter. Jefferson County has the oldest housing nearby, with 76% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Carter | Oklahoma median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 31% | 24% | 28 of 77 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 54% | 55% | 42 of 77 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 23% | 22% | 36 of 77 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 12% | 12% | 46 of 77 |
| Vacant homes | 12% | 17% | 64 of 77 |
| Wood or propane heat | 3.7% | 13% | 74 of 77 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 7/yr | 13/yr | 68 of 77 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 12/yr | 11/yr | 30 of 77 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 48/yr | 65/yr | 73 of 77 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 113/yr | 98/yr | 6 of 77 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Oklahoma county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Carter County: freezing from December to January, heavy rain in May, June 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