Forest County, Wisconsin · Crandon
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Forest County averages 103 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly October to April, and 26% of its homes predate 1960.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 4.6 times a year here, most often in April. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
26% of homes here predate 1960, when clay and cast iron sewer laterals were standard. Roots and cracks in those lines are a common cause of backups.
In Forest County, 2.79 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
52% of occupied homes in Forest County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Wisconsin county median of 32.9%.
About 1 night 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 9,369 people live in Forest County, 1,014 square miles in northern Wisconsin, in roughly 8,715 homes. Crandon is the county seat; Laona, Mole Lake and Wabeno are the next largest communities. The county's median home was built in 1980.
38/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Forest County ranks 62 of 72 Wisconsin counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Forest County ranks highest compared with other Wisconsin counties.
Forest is on the colder side of Wisconsin for pipes. In the 2015–2024 record the county logged about 103 nights a year at or below 20°F (4th of 72) and 191 below freezing. Twenty degrees is roughly where uninsulated pipes start to freeze.
Cold snaps are the real risk. The worst in the record lasted 41 days below freezing (ending March 2015), and the low bottomed out near -29°F on January 31, 2019.
The freeze season here runs October to April, 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 Oct 2 and the last spring freeze around May 26.
Forest gets fewer downpours than most Wisconsin counties, but they still fill basements. The county gets about 35 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 4.6 days of an inch or more (65th of 72). Those downpours cluster in April, May and June, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 2.79 inches on June 12, 2017. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 4.21 inches (through June 18, 2018).
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 107 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 50% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Forest among the newer housing stocks of Wisconsin's 72 counties.
Older and newer homes sit side by side here: 26% predate 1960 and 23% are from 2000 or later. Corroded pipe is the typical failure in the first group, burst supply hoses in the second.
28% 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.
Here 9% 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.
The Census counted 54% of homes as vacant, above the Wisconsin county median of 12%. Empty houses are where a small leak turns into a large claim, because nobody is there to hear it.
Beyond water
About 1 night a year in Forest County stay at 65°F or warmer, a sign of muggy summer air (65th of 72 counties). June is the wettest month. The EPA recommends keeping indoor humidity below 60%, ideally 30 to 50%. Basements can pass 60% on their own in summer, so a dehumidifier matters even without a leak, and anything wet should be dried within 24 to 48 hours.
Mold remediation: what to expectBy main heating fuel, Forest County homes break down as 39% utility gas, 7% electric, 40% propane and 12% wood. Wood and propane heat are more common here than the state median. Have chimneys swept and fuel-burning appliances serviced each fall, and keep three feet clear around stoves and space heaters.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Forest County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Oneida and Vilas get more pipe-freeze nights than Forest. Langlade County has the oldest housing nearby, with 60% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Forest | Wisconsin median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 26% | 31% | 57 of 72 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 50% | 54% | 52 of 72 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 23% | 21% | 29 of 72 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 9.3% | 4.8% | 9 of 72 |
| Vacant homes | 54% | 12% | 2 of 72 |
| Wood or propane heat | 52% | 33% | 11 of 72 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 103/yr | 73/yr | 4 of 72 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 4.6/yr | 6.3/yr | 65 of 72 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 107/yr | 94/yr | 2 of 72 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 1/yr | 11/yr | 65 of 72 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Wisconsin county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Forest County: freezing from October to April, heavy rain in April, May and June.
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