Greene County, Tennessee · Greeneville
Water spreading, a burst pipe, sewage, mold or smoke? Call to be connected with a restoration company that serves Greeneville, Tusculum and Mosheim. 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 Greene County on about 11 nights a year, mostly December to February. Older homes, 20% of the stock here, are most at risk.
February brings the most downpours to Greene County, part of 7.9 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
20% 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.
Greene County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 2.94 inches, and about 66 freeze-thaw days a year mean ice dams in some winters.
9% of occupied homes in Greene County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Tennessee county median of 7.8%.
About 57 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 32,697 homes and around 71,628 residents, Greene County is 622 square miles of northeast Tennessee. Greeneville is the county seat; Tusculum, Mosheim and Baileyton are the next largest communities. Half the homes here were built before 1983, half after.
41/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Greene County ranks 74 of 95 Tennessee counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Greene County ranks highest compared with other Tennessee counties.
Pipe-freeze risk in Greene County sits near the middle of the state. It averaged 71 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 11 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 95 Tennessee counties that's 45th.
On February 20, 2015 the low fell to about -3°F, and in the stretch ending February 2015 the county went 5 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
The freeze season here runs December to February, 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 2 and end around Apr 6.
Greene gets fewer downpours than most Tennessee counties, but they still fill basements. About 7.9 days a year bring an inch or more (93rd of 95), most often in February, out of 49.4 inches of total precipitation. On April 13, 2020, 2.94 inches fell in a single day. The worst three-day stretch dropped 5.69 inches, ending September 27, 2024, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 66 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
Tennessee's 95 counties range widely in housing age; Greene ranks 27th, with 47% of its homes built before 1980.
The mix runs from 20% built before 1960 to 25% built since 2000, so older neighborhoods bring aging pipe while newer subdivisions bring failed appliance lines and water heaters.
The 1980s and 1990s account for 29% 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.
Here 23% of housing is manufactured homes. Check the skirting and the heat tape on the main water line every fall, because that one exposed line is what freezes.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 57 times a year here, below the Tennessee county median of 74. 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 expectHeating fuel matters for fire risk. In Greene County it's 6% utility gas, 83% electric, 6% propane and 3% wood. Wood heat is above the Tennessee norm. Annual chimney and vent inspection, which the NFPA recommends, is one of the most effective fire-prevention habits for these homes.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Greene County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Unicoi and Washington get more pipe-freeze nights than Greene. Unicoi County has the oldest housing nearby, with 57% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Greene | Tennessee median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 20% | 16% | 22 of 95 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 47% | 41% | 27 of 95 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 25% | 27% | 59 of 95 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 23% | 16% | 19 of 95 |
| Vacant homes | 13% | 12% | 37 of 95 |
| Wood or propane heat | 9.3% | 7.8% | 44 of 95 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 11/yr | 11/yr | 45 of 95 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 7.9/yr | 14/yr | 93 of 95 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 66/yr | 60/yr | 18 of 95 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 57/yr | 74/yr | 78 of 95 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Tennessee county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Greene County: freezing from December to February, heavy rain in February, March 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