Richland County, Wisconsin · Richland Center
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Richland County averages 65 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly November to April, and 41% of its homes predate 1960.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 8.3 times a year here, most often in July. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Richland County gets about 8.3 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
Roof leaks here come from summer downpours and, with about 97 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
51% of occupied homes in Richland County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Wisconsin county median of 32.9%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 18 times a year in Richland County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
With 8,532 homes and around 17,205 residents, Richland County is 586 square miles of southern Wisconsin. Besides Richland Center, the county seat, the biggest communities are Lone Rock, Sextonville and Cazenovia. The county's median home was built in 1971.
70/100 Water Damage Risk Index: High Richland County ranks 3 of 72 Wisconsin counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Richland County ranks highest compared with other Wisconsin counties.
For frozen pipes, Richland County is a typical Wisconsin county, which is still plenty. It averaged 150 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 65 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 72 Wisconsin counties that's 47th.
The longest cold spell was straight 17 days without the temperature rising above freezing, ending in January 2018. The coldest night reached about -34°F on January 31, 2019. Burst pipes usually show up when a spell like that breaks and the ice thaws.
Expect the hardest freezes in January, inside a season that runs November to April. That's when an outdoor spigot left connected to a hose, or a pipe in a crawl space, is most likely to split.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Oct 15 and the last spring freeze around May 4.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Wisconsin. About 8.3 days a year bring an inch or more (12th of 72), most often in July, out of 38.2 inches of total precipitation. On September 22, 2016, 4.14 inches fell in a single day. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 5.24 inches (through September 22, 2016).
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 97 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
Wisconsin's 72 counties range widely in housing age; Richland ranks 14th, with 62% of its homes built before 1980.
41% were built before 1960. Homes from that era often still have galvanized steel supply pipe, which rusts from the inside until it pinholes, and cast iron drains that crack with age. Slow leaks behind walls are a common start to water damage in these houses.
15% 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.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 18 times a year here, above the Wisconsin county median of 11. 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 expectMain heating fuel in Richland County's occupied homes: 34% utility gas, 10% electric, 40% propane and 12% wood. Wood and propane heat are above the Wisconsin norm. Annual chimney and vent inspection, which the NFPA recommends, is one of the most effective fire-prevention habits for these homes.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Richland County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Vernon gets more pipe-freeze nights than Richland. 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 | Richland | Wisconsin median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 41% | 31% | 8 of 72 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 62% | 54% | 14 of 72 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 17% | 21% | 63 of 72 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 4.9% | 4.8% | 35 of 72 |
| Vacant homes | 15% | 12% | 33 of 72 |
| Wood or propane heat | 51% | 33% | 13 of 72 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 65/yr | 73/yr | 47 of 72 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 8.3/yr | 6.3/yr | 12 of 72 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 97/yr | 94/yr | 21 of 72 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 18/yr | 11/yr | 14 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 Richland County: freezing from November to April, heavy rain in July, August 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