Karnes County, Texas · Karnes City
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Karnes County averages 1 night a year at 20°F or colder, mostly midwinter, and 24% of its homes predate 1960.
May brings the most downpours to Karnes County, part of 8.5 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Karnes County gets about 8.5 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
In Karnes County, 3.41 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
4% of occupied homes in Karnes County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the Texas county median of 6.5%.
With 174 muggy nights a year, mold in Karnes County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
With 5,975 homes and around 14,968 residents, Karnes County is 748 square miles of southern Texas. Besides Karnes City, the county seat, the biggest communities are Kenedy, Runge and Falls City. Much of its housing is recent, with a median build year of 1988.
52/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Karnes County ranks 106 of 232 Texas counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Karnes County ranks highest compared with other Texas counties.
Winters here are on the gentler end for Texas, and pipes still freeze. In the 2015–2024 record the county logged about 1 night a year at or below 20°F (159th of 232) and 8 below freezing. Twenty degrees is roughly where uninsulated pipes start to freeze.
Hard freezes are uncommon here, about 8 nights a year at or below 32°F, and that's exactly why they do damage: pipes in attics, exterior walls and slab-edge plumbing are rarely insulated. The coldest night in the record was about 14°F on February 15, 2021.
Rainfall is about average for Texas. The county gets about 31.4 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 8.5 days of an inch or more (104th of 232). Those downpours cluster in April, May and September, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 3.41 inches on August 26, 2017. The worst three-day stretch dropped 7.65 inches, ending August 28, 2017, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
Housing
Texas's 232 counties range widely in housing age; Karnes ranks 152nd, with 40% of its homes built before 1980.
Before 1960 is when 24% of these homes went up. Galvanized supply lines and cast iron drains were standard then, and after 60-plus years both corrode and crack, often out of sight inside a wall or under a slab.
About 26% 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.
Here 15% of housing is manufactured homes. Check the skirting and the heat tape on the main water line every fall, because that one exposed line is what freezes.
21% of homes were vacant at survey time. A leak in an empty rental or seasonal house can run for days before anyone notices, which is why those losses tend to be larger.
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
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 174 times a year here, above the Texas county median of 129. 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 Karnes County's occupied homes: 14% utility gas, 81% 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 Karnes County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Karnes gets more pipe-freeze nights than any of its neighbors. Bee County has the oldest housing nearby, with 54% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Karnes | Texas median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 24% | 20% | 88 of 232 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 40% | 46% | 152 of 232 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 33% | 26% | 66 of 232 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 15% | 13% | 94 of 232 |
| Vacant homes | 21% | 17% | 72 of 232 |
| Wood or propane heat | 4% | 6.5% | 161 of 232 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 1/yr | 3/yr | 159 of 232 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 8.5/yr | 7.8/yr | 104 of 232 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 7/yr | 27/yr | 196 of 232 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 174/yr | 129/yr | 35 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 Karnes County: freezing from midwinter, heavy rain in April, May 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