Walker County, Texas · Huntsville
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With 5% of homes built before 1960 and about 1 hard-freeze night a year, frozen and split pipes are a leading winter risk in the county.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 14.6 times a year here, most often in May. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Walker County gets about 14.6 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
In Walker County, 7.73 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
8% of occupied homes in Walker County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Texas county median of 6.5%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 153 times a year in Walker County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
Walker County covers 784 square miles of eastern Texas, with about 80,209 residents and 30,383 homes. The county seat is Huntsville, and New Waverly and Riverside round out the largest towns. Much of its housing is recent, with a median build year of 1989.
40/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Walker County ranks 193 of 232 Texas counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Walker 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 13 below freezing. Twenty degrees is roughly where uninsulated pipes start to freeze.
Hard freezes are uncommon here, about 13 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 6°F on February 16, 2021.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Texas. Of roughly 54 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 14.6 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 37th of 232. April, May and December see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 7.73 inches, August 28, 2017. The worst three-day stretch dropped 17.48 inches, ending August 29, 2017, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
Housing
33% of homes in Walker County predate 1980, below the Texas county median of 45.8%, which ranks 185th of Texas's 232 counties.
Since 2000 the county has added enough housing that 34% of homes are that new. Modern PEX and copper rarely fail on their own; the leaks come from connections, appliances and storms.
34% date from 1980 to 1999, the window when polybutylene, a gray flexible plastic supply pipe, was used in some homes. It's prone to leaks at the fittings, so it's worth checking for in a house from those years.
17% of homes are manufactured or mobile homes, above the Texas county median of 13.4%. 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.
Renters occupy 44% 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 153 times a year here, above the Texas county median of 129. 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 expectBy main heating fuel, Walker County homes break down as 19% utility gas, 72% electric, 6% propane and 2% wood. Wood heat is more common here than in most Texas 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 Walker County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Houston gets more pipe-freeze nights than Walker. Houston County has the oldest housing nearby, with 48% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Walker | Texas median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 4.5% | 20% | 222 of 232 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 33% | 46% | 185 of 232 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 34% | 26% | 63 of 232 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 17% | 13% | 70 of 232 |
| Vacant homes | 14% | 17% | 138 of 232 |
| Wood or propane heat | 7.5% | 6.5% | 105 of 232 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 1/yr | 3/yr | 159 of 232 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 15/yr | 7.8/yr | 37 of 232 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 13/yr | 27/yr | 171 of 232 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 153/yr | 129/yr | 63 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 Walker County: freezing from midwinter, heavy rain in April, May 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