Madison County, Tennessee · Jackson
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Pipes freeze in Madison County on about 10 nights a year, mostly December to February. Older homes, 16% of the stock here, are most at risk.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 14.1 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 Madison County gets about 14.1 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 58 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
6% of occupied homes in Madison County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the Tennessee county median of 7.8%.
With 91 muggy nights a year, mold in Madison County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
About 99,295 people live in Madison County, 557 square miles in western Tennessee, in roughly 44,091 homes. Jackson is the county seat; Three Way, Pinson and Beech Bluff are the next largest communities. Much of its housing is recent, with a median build year of 1986.
50/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Madison County ranks 50 of 95 Tennessee counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Madison County ranks highest compared with other Tennessee counties.
For frozen pipes, Madison County is a typical Tennessee county, which is still plenty. From 2015–2024 it averaged 10 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 63 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 56th of 95 counties.
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.
Expect the hardest freezes in January, inside a season that runs December to February. That's when an outdoor spigot left connected to a hose, or a pipe in a crawl space, is most likely to split.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Nov 6 and the last spring freeze around Mar 30.
Rainfall is about average for Tennessee. The county gets about 58.1 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 14.1 days of an inch or more (48th of 95). Those downpours cluster in February, March and December, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 3.98 inches on September 1, 2017. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 6.41 inches (through September 24, 2018).
About 58 days a year swing from below freezing at night to above freezing by day. Those freeze-thaw cycles feed ice dams on roofs, open cracks in foundations and driveways, and stress pipes that are already marginal.
Housing
Tennessee's 95 counties range widely in housing age; Madison ranks 50th, with 41% of its homes built before 1980.
Housing age is mixed: 16% of homes are pre-1960 and 24% are 2000 or newer. Ask any plumber which era your house is from and you'll know which failures to watch for.
About 35% of homes went up between 1980 and 1999. Some houses from the late 1970s to the mid-1990s were plumbed with polybutylene, a gray plastic pipe known for failing at fittings. A plumber can tell you in a few minutes whether you have it.
Renters occupy 38% 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
Madison County averages 91 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 expectHeating fuel matters for fire risk. In Madison County it's 46% utility gas, 48% electric, 5% propane and under 1% 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 Madison County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Carroll, Gibson and Henderson get more pipe-freeze nights than Madison. Haywood County has the oldest housing nearby, with 58% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Madison | Tennessee median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 16% | 16% | 51 of 95 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 41% | 41% | 50 of 95 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 24% | 27% | 62 of 95 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 5.2% | 16% | 86 of 95 |
| Vacant homes | 8.9% | 12% | 71 of 95 |
| Wood or propane heat | 5.5% | 7.8% | 66 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 | 48 of 95 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 58/yr | 60/yr | 66 of 95 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 91/yr | 74/yr | 11 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 Madison 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