Quick answer
For water damage in Preston, TX, shut off your main valve first, or turn off the well pump breaker if you are on a private well. Check your bill for the water provider, then call it about the meter. Then call a water damage restoration company; drying should start within 24 to 48 hours. Texas insurers must acknowledge your claim within 15 days.
Do this first
Local water and septic lines.
The Grayson County flash flood table is on the Howe page, and FEMA counts for ZIP 75076 are on the Pottsboro page.
- Shut off the water. Close the valve at your meter box. Homes on the Preston peninsula are served by several small water systems, so read the provider name off your bill before you call about the meter.
- Make it safe and document it. Cut power to wet rooms from a dry spot, photograph the damage, then report the claim.
- Start drying within 24 to 48 hours. About 38% of Preston's homes are manufactured homes. Lake-area humidity keeps wet subfloors and belly insulation damp, so ask the crew to check under the home, not only inside.
Turn around if water is over a road. Two feet of rushing water can carry away most vehicles, including SUVs.
What to know about water damage in Preston
1,000 wagons
About how many crossed the Red River at Preston in a single year in the 1840s, when the town was the end of the Texas Road and the start of the Preston Road.
Source: Handbook of Texas, Preston
Under Lake Texoma
Old Preston grew around a trading post Holland Coffee and his partner Colville set up about 1837 in the Washita Bend of the Red River. The Army Corps of Engineers bought the land in the late 1930s, and the townsite went under Lake Texoma after the dam was finished in 1944.
Source: Handbook of Texas, Preston
Septic permit fees
Grayson County requires a permit for every new or replacement septic system. Its 2025 fee schedule lists $310 for a conventional system up to 1,000 gallons a day and $100 for a repair permit.
Sources: Grayson County Development Services, 2025 fee schedule
Lake water systems
The Red River Authority's Preston Shores system is one of the public water systems the state lists for Grayson County. Its billing office in Wichita Falls is open 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Sources: Texas Water Development Board, Red River Authority billing
Homes in Preston
The median home dates to 1984, and 44% were built before 1980. About 79% are owner-occupied, and the median value is about $184,000.
Freezes and rain
The NOAA weather station at Sherman, about 8.3 miles away, averages 43.4 nights a year at or below 32°F and 6.5 at or below 20°F. In half of years the first freeze comes by November 19 and the last one after March 14. Pipes in outside walls, attics, and pier-and-beam crawlspaces are the first to split. It also averages 44.29 inches of rain a year, with about 14.3 days of an inch or more.
Check your ZIP
Flash flood warnings in Grayson County
The National Weather Service issued 39 flash flood warnings that included Grayson County from 2016 through November 12, 2026. The year-by-year count is on the Howe page.
Cost and insurance in Preston
How much does water damage restoration cost in Preston?
Most jobs run $450 to $16,000 (Angi). Lake or creek water that rises into the house is a flood claim, not a homeowners claim. Manufactured homes near the lake need the belly and subfloor dried, not just the rooms.
Water removal and restoration in Preston
The company that answers handles water under manufactured homes, burst pipes in hard freezes, lake house plumbing left on over winter, and septic backups, plus burst pipes, appliance leaks, drying, and septic backups.
Preston questions
Who issues septic permits around Preston?
Grayson County Development Services in Sherman, 903-813-5275. A permit is needed for new and replacement systems, and repairs have their own $100 permit.
Where did old Preston go?
The original townsite in Preston Bend was flooded by Lake Texoma in the 1940s. The community today sits on the peninsula above it.
How much rain falls near Preston?
The NOAA station at Sherman averages about 44 inches a year, with about 14 days of an inch or more. Grayson County data for Southmayd and Knollwood is on this page.
Which ZIP codes does this page cover?
The Preston part of ZIP 75076. The ZIP also covers Pottsboro.
Related guides
Other Texas towns- Burst pipe, not frozen
- Sewage backup: what to do first
- Burst pipe repair cost
- Texas insurance claim deadlines, in plain English
- Frozen and burst pipes: what to do
- Does homeowners insurance cover water damage?
- How long water damage takes to dry
Local phone numbers checked November 2026: