Rhea County, Tennessee · Dayton
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Pipes freeze in Rhea County on about 8 nights a year, mostly December to February. Older homes, 13% of the stock here, are most at risk.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 14.8 times a year here, most often in December. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Sewage backups in Rhea County spike on heavy-rain days, about 14.8 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Roof leaks here come from summer downpours and, with about 60 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
5% of occupied homes in Rhea County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the Tennessee county median of 7.8%.
About 74 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 15,451 homes and around 33,992 residents, Rhea County is 315 square miles of central Tennessee. Besides Dayton, the county seat, the biggest communities are Spring City and Graysville. Much of its housing is recent, with a median build year of 1988.
36/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Rhea County ranks 83 of 95 Tennessee counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Rhea County ranks highest compared with other Tennessee counties.
Winters here are on the gentler end for Tennessee, and pipes still freeze. From 2015–2024 it averaged 8 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 64 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 81st of 95 counties.
Cold snaps are the real risk. The worst in the record lasted 4 days below freezing (ending December 2022), and the low bottomed out near -1°F on January 17, 2024.
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 6 and end around Apr 1.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Tennessee. About 14.8 days a year bring an inch or more (31st of 95), most often in December, out of 61.5 inches of total precipitation. On February 6, 2020, 4.43 inches fell in a single day. The worst three-day stretch dropped 6.15 inches, ending September 27, 2018, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
About 60 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; Rhea ranks 61st, with 39% of its homes built before 1980.
Growth since 2000 added 31% of today's homes. In houses that new, the weak points are washing machine hoses, ice maker lines, water heaters and sump pumps rather than the pipes in the walls.
About 30% 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.
Manufactured and mobile homes make up 19% 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
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 74 times a year here, close to the Tennessee county median of 74. 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 Rhea County it's 38% utility gas, 55% electric, 2% 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 Rhea County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Bledsoe and Cumberland get more pipe-freeze nights than Rhea. Roane County has the oldest housing nearby, with 51% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Rhea | Tennessee median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 13% | 16% | 73 of 95 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 39% | 41% | 61 of 95 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 31% | 27% | 28 of 95 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 19% | 16% | 33 of 95 |
| Vacant homes | 13% | 12% | 41 of 95 |
| Wood or propane heat | 4.6% | 7.8% | 72 of 95 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 8/yr | 11/yr | 81 of 95 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 15/yr | 14/yr | 31 of 95 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 60/yr | 60/yr | 48 of 95 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 74/yr | 74/yr | 44 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 Rhea 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