Lebanon County, Pennsylvania · Lebanon
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With 39% of homes built before 1960 and about 27 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 10.4 times a year here, most often in August. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
39% 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 Lebanon County, 4.5 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
9% of occupied homes in Lebanon County heat mainly with wood or propane, close to the Pennsylvania county median of 10%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 46 times a year in Lebanon County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
Lebanon County covers 362 square miles of southeast Pennsylvania, with about 144,186 residents and 59,921 homes. The county seat is Lebanon, and Palmyra, Campbelltown and Annville round out the largest towns. The county's median home was built in 1972.
51/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Lebanon County ranks 29 of 67 Pennsylvania counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Lebanon County ranks highest compared with other Pennsylvania counties.
Lebanon County is milder than most of Pennsylvania, but not mild enough to skip winterizing. It averaged 104 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 27 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 67 Pennsylvania counties that's 58th.
Cold snaps are the real risk. The worst in the record lasted 14 days below freezing (ending January 2018), and the low bottomed out near -5°F on January 31, 2019.
Most freezing nights fall from November to March, 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 1 and the last spring freeze around Apr 16.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Pennsylvania. The county gets about 48.2 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 10.4 days of an inch or more (8th of 67). Those downpours cluster in August, September and December, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 4.5 inches on September 2, 2021. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 7.39 inches (through July 25, 2018).
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 89 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 61% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Lebanon near the middle of Pennsylvania's 67 counties.
20% of homes were built in 2000 or later, more than in most of Pennsylvania. Newer plumbing rarely corrodes, so damage here tends to come from appliance supply lines, water heaters, sump pumps and storms.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 46 times a year here, above the Pennsylvania county median of 16. The EPA recommends keeping indoor humidity below 60%, ideally 30 to 50%. Basements can pass 60% on their own in summer, so a dehumidifier matters even without a leak, and anything wet should be dried within 24 to 48 hours.
Mold remediation: what to expectBy main heating fuel, Lebanon County homes break down as 33% utility gas, 25% electric, 7% propane and 2% wood. Heating equipment, cooking and electrical failures cause most home fires nationally. Even a small kitchen fire can leave soot through the whole house, because smoke follows air currents into closets, ducts and attic space.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Lebanon County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Berks, Dauphin and Schuylkill get more pipe-freeze nights than Lebanon. Schuylkill County has the oldest housing nearby, with 79% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Lebanon | Pennsylvania median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 39% | 42% | 42 of 67 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 61% | 66% | 43 of 67 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 20% | 13% | 10 of 67 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 4.8% | 6.6% | 45 of 67 |
| Vacant homes | 5.4% | 12% | 55 of 67 |
| Wood or propane heat | 9.1% | 10% | 38 of 67 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 27/yr | 37/yr | 58 of 67 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 10/yr | 7/yr | 8 of 67 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 89/yr | 98/yr | 55 of 67 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 46/yr | 16/yr | 7 of 67 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Pennsylvania county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Lebanon County: freezing from November to March, heavy rain in August, September and December.
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