Pierce County, Wisconsin · Ellsworth
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With 27% of homes built before 1960 and about 80 hard-freeze nights a year, frozen and split pipes are a leading winter risk in the county.
August brings the most downpours to Pierce County, part of 6.4 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
27% 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.
Pierce County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 3.54 inches, and about 86 freeze-thaw days a year mean ice dams in some winters.
35% of occupied homes in Pierce County heat mainly with wood or propane, close to the Wisconsin county median of 32.9%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 16 times a year in Pierce County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
About 42,584 people live in Pierce County, 574 square miles in western Wisconsin, in roughly 17,152 homes. The county seat is Ellsworth, and Prescott, Spring Valley and Elmwood round out the largest towns. Half the homes here were built before 1980, half after.
52/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Pierce County ranks 35 of 72 Wisconsin counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Pierce County ranks highest compared with other Wisconsin counties.
Pipe-freeze risk in Pierce County sits near the middle of the state. In the 2015–2024 record the county logged about 80 nights a year at or below 20°F (26th of 72) and 156 below freezing. Twenty degrees is roughly where uninsulated pipes start to freeze.
Cold snaps are the real risk. The worst in the record lasted 32 days below freezing (ending March 2019), and the low bottomed out near -34°F on January 31, 2019.
Most freezing nights fall from November to April, peaking in January. Disconnect garden hoses and shut off outdoor spigots before the first hard frost, and keep the heat at 55°F or higher if you'll be away.
Freezing nights typically start around Oct 20 and end around May 3.
Rainfall is about average for Wisconsin. The county gets about 34.7 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 6.4 days of an inch or more (35th of 72). Those downpours cluster in May, June and August, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 3.54 inches on August 11, 2016. The worst three-day stretch dropped 4.04 inches, ending June 30, 2020, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 86 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
50% of homes in Pierce County predate 1980, close to the Wisconsin county median of 54.1%, which ranks 50th of Wisconsin's 72 counties.
27% of homes were built in 2000 or later, more than in most of Wisconsin. Newer plumbing rarely corrodes, so damage here tends to come from appliance supply lines, water heaters, sump pumps and storms.
The 1980s and 1990s account for 23% of the county's homes. If yours is from those decades, look under the sinks and at the water heater for gray plastic pipe stamped PB, which is polybutylene and leak-prone.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 16 times a year here, above the Wisconsin county median of 11. 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 Pierce County's occupied homes: 44% utility gas, 17% electric, 31% propane and 5% wood. Propane heat is more common here than in most Wisconsin 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 Pierce County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Dunn and St. Croix get more pipe-freeze nights than Pierce. Pepin County has the oldest housing nearby, with 64% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Pierce | Wisconsin median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 27% | 31% | 50 of 72 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 50% | 54% | 50 of 72 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 27% | 21% | 7 of 72 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 4.6% | 4.8% | 39 of 72 |
| Vacant homes | 7.5% | 12% | 48 of 72 |
| Wood or propane heat | 35% | 33% | 35 of 72 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 80/yr | 73/yr | 26 of 72 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 6.4/yr | 6.3/yr | 35 of 72 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 86/yr | 94/yr | 71 of 72 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 16/yr | 11/yr | 21 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 Pierce County: freezing from November to April, heavy rain in May, June and August.
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