Audrain County, MO Shrink-Swell Risk
Audrain County, MO's soil, for shrink-swell risk
High
Audrain County, MO: USDA's soil survey rates 75.3% of the county "High" for shrink-swell potential (6.48% linear extensibility). 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.
What Audrain County's reading doesn't cover
Two lots a mile apart in Audrain County can carry different soil, even though they share one countywide reading. A site-specific soil report, usually $1,000-$5,000, is what an engineer would actually pull before designing a foundation on a lot in Audrain County.
What it costs to find out, versus to ignore it
Given Audrain 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 Audrain 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.
How Audrain County, MO compares
Nationally, Audrain County, MO is the 91-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Missouri alone it ranks 5 of 114. Audrain County, MO is 692 square miles with a population of 24,304.
See how another county compares
Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Carroll County, MO and Park County, MT 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 Missouri
Every county in Missouri is on this site, including Hickory County, MO and Andrew County, MO. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.