Lamb County, Texas · Littlefield
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Lamb County averages 21 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly December to February, and 34% of its homes predate 1960.
June brings the most downpours to Lamb County, part of 2.9 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Lamb County gets about 2.9 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
In Lamb County, 2.32 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
3% of occupied homes in Lamb County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the Texas county median of 6.5%.
About 46 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
About 12,828 people live in Lamb County, 1,016 square miles in northwest Texas, in roughly 5,885 homes. The county seat is Littlefield, and Olton, Sudan and Earth round out the largest towns. Half the homes here were built before 1966, half after.
56/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Lamb County ranks 73 of 232 Texas counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Lamb County ranks highest compared with other Texas counties.
Lamb County gets more hard-freeze nights than most of Texas. From 2015–2024 it averaged 21 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 95 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 13th of 232 counties.
On February 15, 2021 the low fell to about -2°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.
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 Oct 30 and end around Apr 8.
Lamb gets fewer downpours than most Texas counties, but they still fill basements. The county gets about 18.6 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 2.9 days of an inch or more (206th of 232). Those downpours cluster in May, June and September, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 2.32 inches on October 22, 2015. The worst three-day stretch dropped 3.17 inches, ending October 23, 2015, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 89 times a year here. They're the main driver of ice dams and of water working its way through foundation cracks in late winter.
Housing
76% of homes in Lamb County predate 1980, above the Texas county median of 45.8%, which ranks 12th of Texas's 232 counties.
In Lamb County 34% 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.
With 21% of homes empty at survey time, landlords and seasonal owners should shut off the main or schedule checks in winter. An unheated vacant house is also where many policies limit freeze coverage.
Beyond water
Lamb County averages 46 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in May. 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 expectMain heating fuel in Lamb County's occupied homes: 58% utility gas, 38% electric, 3% 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 Lamb County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Bailey, Castro and Parmer get more pipe-freeze nights than Lamb. All of its neighbors see more heavy-rain days. Its housing is the oldest in the area by share of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Lamb | Texas median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 34% | 20% | 40 of 232 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 76% | 46% | 12 of 232 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 9.7% | 26% | 211 of 232 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 7.8% | 13% | 178 of 232 |
| Vacant homes | 21% | 17% | 74 of 232 |
| Wood or propane heat | 3% | 6.5% | 189 of 232 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 21/yr | 3/yr | 13 of 232 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 2.9/yr | 7.8/yr | 206 of 232 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 89/yr | 27/yr | 15 of 232 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 46/yr | 129/yr | 223 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 Lamb County: freezing from December to February, 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