Aiken County, South Carolina · Aiken
Water spreading, a burst pipe, sewage, mold or smoke? Call to be connected with a restoration company that serves Aiken, North Augusta and Belvedere. Start the steps below while you wait.
Answered 24/7 by a participating local provider. We're a referral service and don't do the work ourselves. How it works
Start here
Pick the closest match. These steps limit the damage and protect your insurance claim. Skip anything that isn't safe.
Pipes freeze in Aiken County on about 2 nights a year, mostly midwinter. Older homes, 18% of the stock here, are most at risk.
January brings the most downpours to Aiken County, part of 13.7 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
18% 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.
Aiken County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 4.67 inches, and about 28 freeze-thaw days a year mean ice dams in some winters.
4% of occupied homes in Aiken County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the South Carolina county median of 5.1%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 115 times a year in Aiken County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
About 174,160 people live in Aiken County, 1,071 square miles in central South Carolina, in roughly 80,008 homes. Besides Aiken, the county seat, the biggest communities are North Augusta, Belvedere and Clearwater. Much of its housing is recent, with a median build year of 1989.
64/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Aiken County ranks 3 of 46 South Carolina counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Aiken County ranks highest compared with other South Carolina counties.
Pipe-freeze risk in Aiken County sits near the middle of the state. In the 2015–2024 record the county logged about 2 nights a year at or below 20°F (20th of 46) and 28 below freezing. Twenty degrees is roughly where uninsulated pipes start to freeze.
The freeze season here runs midwinter, 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 Nov 20 and end around Mar 13.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of South Carolina. Of roughly 50.1 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 13.7 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 5th of 46. January, June and December see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 4.67 inches, September 27, 2024. The worst three-day stretch dropped 6.14 inches, ending October 5, 2015, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 28 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
South Carolina's 46 counties range widely in housing age; Aiken ranks 27th, with 37% of its homes built before 1980.
33% of homes were built in 2000 or later, more than in most of South Carolina. Newer plumbing rarely corrodes, so damage here tends to come from appliance supply lines, water heaters, sump pumps and storms.
The 1980s and 1990s account for 30% of the county's homes. If yours is from those decades, look under the sinks and at the water heater for gray plastic pipe stamped PB, which is polybutylene and leak-prone.
Manufactured and mobile homes make up 18% 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.
Beyond water
About 115 nights a year in Aiken County stay at 65°F or warmer, a sign of muggy summer air (20th of 46 counties). December 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 expectHeating fuel matters for fire risk. In Aiken County it's 31% utility gas, 64% electric, 3% propane and under 1% wood. Fires here are likelier to start in the kitchen or the wiring than in the furnace. After any fire, keep the HVAC off until ducts are checked, or soot will travel through the house.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Aiken County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Aiken gets more pipe-freeze nights than any of its neighbors. It also has the most heavy-rain days in its area. Orangeburg County has the oldest housing nearby, with 45% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Aiken | South Carolina median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 18% | 15% | 13 of 46 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 37% | 40% | 27 of 46 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 33% | 25% | 15 of 46 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 18% | 22% | 30 of 46 |
| Vacant homes | 13% | 16% | 30 of 46 |
| Wood or propane heat | 4% | 5.1% | 34 of 46 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 2/yr | 2/yr | 20 of 46 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 14/yr | 12/yr | 5 of 46 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 28/yr | 35/yr | 38 of 46 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 115/yr | 114/yr | 20 of 46 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest South Carolina county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Aiken County: freezing from midwinter, heavy rain in January, June 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