Allen County, KS Shrink-Swell Risk

What Allen County, KS's soil means for a foundation

High

USDA's SSURGO data puts Allen County, KS's soil at "High" shrink-swell potential, an area-weighted linear extensibility of 6.26% across 47.6% of the county's surveyed land. Soil at this level can crack a standard foundation without moisture-control measures - consistent watering near the foundation, correct grading, root barriers - or added structural design.

This is a county figure, not a lot figure

USDA's survey covers the whole of Allen County, KS at once, not any single address. The real answer for one lot is still a site-specific geotechnical report, running about $1,000-$5,000 (typically near $2,700).

Report cost vs. repair cost

Given Allen County's rating, spending a few thousand now is the way to avoid spending tens of thousands later. The report ($1,000-$5,000) is what tells you whether Allen County's county-level reading applies to your lot; the repair ($5,000-$15,000) is what it costs if you skip that and find out from the cracks instead.

Allen County's rank among Kansas counties

Nationally, Allen County, KS is the 104-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Kansas alone it ranks 3 of 105. Allen County covers 500 square miles and counts 12,425 residents.

For contrast

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Barren County, KY and Bulloch County, GA are worth a look for comparison.

How this reading is built, and its real limits · The warning signs of expansive-clay damage, explained

More of Kansas

Every county in Kansas is on this site, including Rice County, KS and Rooks County, KS. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.