Lawrence County, Tennessee · Lawrenceburg
Water spreading, a burst pipe, sewage, mold or smoke? Call to be connected with a restoration company that serves Lawrenceburg, Loretto and St. Joseph. 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 Lawrence County on about 10 nights a year, mostly December to February. Older homes, 19% of the stock here, are most at risk.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 14.3 times a year here, most often in February. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Lawrence County gets about 14.3 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
Roof leaks here come from summer downpours and, with about 62 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
16% of occupied homes in Lawrence County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Tennessee county median of 7.8%.
With 70 muggy nights a year, mold in Lawrence County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
With 18,730 homes and around 45,385 residents, Lawrence County is 617 square miles of southwest Tennessee. The county seat is Lawrenceburg, and Loretto, St. Joseph and Summertown round out the largest towns. The county's median home was built in 1983.
49/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Lawrence County ranks 54 of 95 Tennessee counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Lawrence County ranks highest compared with other Tennessee counties.
For frozen pipes, Lawrence County is a typical Tennessee county, which is still plenty. It averaged 66 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 10 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 56th.
On January 17, 2024 the low fell to about -4°F, and in the stretch ending February 2021 the county went 7 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
Most freezing nights fall from December to February, 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 2 and the last spring freeze around Mar 30.
Rainfall is about average for Tennessee. Of roughly 59.4 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 14.3 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 45th of 95. February, March and December see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 3.27 inches, August 31, 2021. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 5.83 inches (through February 23, 2019).
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 62 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
46% of homes in Lawrence County predate 1980, above the Tennessee county median of 41.2%, which ranks 33rd of Tennessee's 95 counties.
Housing age is mixed: 19% of homes are pre-1960 and 21% are 2000 or newer. Ask any plumber which era your house is from and you'll know which failures to watch for.
The 1980s and 1990s account for 34% 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.
11% of homes are manufactured or mobile homes, below the Tennessee county median of 15.9%. Their water lines run under the floor behind the skirting, so a torn skirt or failed heat tape freezes them faster than lines in a site-built house.
Beyond water
Lawrence County averages 70 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in February. 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 expectBy main heating fuel, Lawrence County homes break down as 27% utility gas, 56% electric, 10% propane and 6% wood. Wood and propane heat are more common here than the state median. Have chimneys swept and fuel-burning appliances serviced each fall, and keep three feet clear around stoves and space heaters.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Lawrence County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Lewis and Maury get more pipe-freeze nights than Lawrence. Wayne County has the oldest housing nearby, with 48% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Lawrence | Tennessee median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 19% | 16% | 32 of 95 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 46% | 41% | 33 of 95 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 21% | 27% | 76 of 95 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 11% | 16% | 62 of 95 |
| Vacant homes | 9.3% | 12% | 66 of 95 |
| Wood or propane heat | 16% | 7.8% | 18 of 95 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 10/yr | 11/yr | 56 of 95 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 14/yr | 14/yr | 45 of 95 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 62/yr | 60/yr | 45 of 95 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 70/yr | 74/yr | 53 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 Lawrence 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