Howard County, Texas · Big Spring
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Pipes freeze in Howard County on about 5 nights a year, mostly January. Older homes, 38% of the stock here, are most at risk.
June brings the most downpours to Howard County, part of 4 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
Sewage backups in Howard County spike on heavy-rain days, about 4 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Howard County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 3.06 inches, and about 41 freeze-thaw days a year mean ice dams in some winters.
4% of occupied homes in Howard County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the Texas county median of 6.5%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 111 times a year in Howard County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
Howard County covers 901 square miles of central Texas, with about 32,290 residents and 14,048 homes. Big Spring is the county seat; Coahoma, Sand Springs and Forsan are the next largest communities. The county's median home was built in 1966.
57/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Howard County ranks 67 of 232 Texas counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Howard County ranks highest compared with other Texas counties.
Howard is on the colder side of Texas for pipes. It averaged 45 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 5 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 232 Texas counties that's 54th.
Cold snaps are the real risk. The worst in the record lasted 9 days below freezing (ending February 2021), and the low bottomed out near 2°F on February 15, 2021.
The freeze season here runs January, with January the coldest. If you travel then, leave the thermostat at 55°F or above and open sink cabinets on outside walls.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Nov 15 and the last spring freeze around Mar 1.
Howard gets fewer downpours than most Texas counties, but they still fill basements. About 4 days a year bring an inch or more (187th of 232), most often in June, out of 18.1 inches of total precipitation. On September 3, 2024, 3.06 inches fell in a single day. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 4.87 inches (through June 29, 2021).
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 41 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
Texas's 232 counties range widely in housing age; Howard ranks 20th, with 73% of its homes built before 1980.
In Howard County 38% of homes are older than 1960. If yours is one of them and the plumbing has never been replaced, expect galvanized steel supply pipe and cast iron drain lines, the two materials most likely to fail quietly.
Manufactured and mobile homes make up 8% 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
Howard County averages 111 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in May. 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 expectMain heating fuel in Howard County's occupied homes: 47% utility gas, 49% electric, 4% propane and under 1% wood. Most homes here heat with gas or electricity, so cooking and electrical faults are the likelier fire sources. Even a contained kitchen fire can send soot through the ductwork to every room.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Howard County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Howard gets more pipe-freeze nights than any of its neighbors. Mitchell County has the oldest housing nearby, with 78% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Howard | Texas median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 38% | 20% | 29 of 232 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 73% | 46% | 20 of 232 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 12% | 26% | 201 of 232 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 7.8% | 13% | 178 of 232 |
| Vacant homes | 13% | 17% | 153 of 232 |
| Wood or propane heat | 3.8% | 6.5% | 172 of 232 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 5/yr | 3/yr | 54 of 232 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 4/yr | 7.8/yr | 187 of 232 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 41/yr | 27/yr | 55 of 232 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 111/yr | 129/yr | 178 of 232 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Texas county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Howard County: freezing from January, heavy rain in May, June and September.
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