Bourbon County, KY Shrink-Swell Risk

Shrink-swell potential in Bourbon County, KY

Moderate

Soil across 82.1% of Bourbon County, KY comes back "Moderate" in USDA's shrink-swell data, averaging 4.27% linear extensibility. That's a middle reading: not the sharp swings that crack a foundation outright, but enough that grading and drainage are worth getting right.

What this number does and doesn't tell you

This is a countywide, area-weighted figure across every soil survey map unit in Bourbon County, KY - never a reading for one specific parcel. A local geotechnical report, typically $1,000-$5,000 (around $2,700 typical), is the only way to know what one lot in Bourbon County will actually do.

Bourbon County: the real numbers

Bourbon County's soil reading points toward standard foundation practice as the likely outcome, not the exception. A geotechnical report runs $1,000-$5,000, typically around $2,700. Foundation repair, if a specific lot turns out to differ from the county average, runs $5,000-$15,000.

How Bourbon County, KY compares

Among the 3,085 rated counties on this site, Bourbon County, KY ranks 449 most-constrained nationally, and 2 of 120 within Kentucky. The county spans 290 square miles, home to 20,333 people.

For contrast

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Mecklenburg County, NC and Palm Beach County, FL are worth a look for comparison.

How this reading is built, and its real limits · Moisture management: the cheap fix that works on any soil

Elsewhere in Kentucky

Every county in Kentucky is on this site, including Pike County, KY and Washington County, KY. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.