Sequatchie County, Tennessee · Dunlap
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Sequatchie County averages 11 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly December to February, and 14% of its homes predate 1960.
Basements flood here mostly in February. Sequatchie County averages 16.6 days a year with an inch of rain or more.
Sewage backups in Sequatchie County spike on heavy-rain days, about 16.6 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.
21% of occupied homes in Sequatchie County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Tennessee county median of 7.8%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 67 times a year in Sequatchie County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
With 6,992 homes and around 16,809 residents, Sequatchie County is 266 square miles of southern Tennessee. Dunlap is the county seat; Lone Oak is the next largest community. Much of its housing is recent, with a median build year of 1993.
54/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Sequatchie County ranks 40 of 95 Tennessee counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Sequatchie County ranks highest compared with other Tennessee counties.
Pipe-freeze risk in Sequatchie County sits near the middle of the state. In the 2015–2024 record the county logged about 11 nights a year at or below 20°F (45th of 95) and 64 below freezing. Twenty degrees is roughly where uninsulated pipes start to freeze.
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 -2°F on January 17, 2024.
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.
Freezing nights typically start around Nov 4 and end around Mar 30.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Tennessee. Of roughly 63.4 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 16.6 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 6th of 95. February, March and December see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 4.14 inches, February 6, 2020. The worst three-day stretch dropped 5.79 inches, ending September 27, 2018, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 60 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
Roughly 31% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Sequatchie among the newer housing stocks of Tennessee's 95 counties.
Growth since 2000 added 38% 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 32% 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.
19% of homes are manufactured or mobile homes, above 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
About 67 nights a year in Sequatchie County stay at 65°F or warmer, a sign of muggy summer air (59th of 95 counties). February 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 expectBy main heating fuel, Sequatchie County homes break down as 15% utility gas, 63% electric, 16% propane and 5% wood. Wood and propane heat are more common here than in most Tennessee counties. Heating equipment is one of the leading causes of home fires nationally, and the NFPA recommends having chimneys and vents inspected every year.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Sequatchie County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Grundy, Van Buren and Warren get more pipe-freeze nights than Sequatchie. Van Buren County has the oldest housing nearby, with 55% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Sequatchie | Tennessee median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 14% | 16% | 62 of 95 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 31% | 41% | 83 of 95 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 38% | 27% | 12 of 95 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 19% | 16% | 39 of 95 |
| Vacant homes | 11% | 12% | 51 of 95 |
| Wood or propane heat | 21% | 7.8% | 10 of 95 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 11/yr | 11/yr | 45 of 95 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 17/yr | 14/yr | 6 of 95 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 60/yr | 60/yr | 48 of 95 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 67/yr | 74/yr | 59 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 Sequatchie 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