Butler County, MO Shrink-Swell Risk

Butler County, MO's soil, for shrink-swell risk

Low

Butler County, MO: USDA's soil survey rates 80.9% of the county "Low" for shrink-swell potential (2.03% linear extensibility). That's as favorable a county-level reading as this dataset produces - standard foundation practice, pending one lot's own geotechnical report.

What Butler County's reading doesn't cover

Two lots a mile apart in Butler County can carry different soil, even though they share one countywide reading. A local geotechnical report, typically $1,000-$5,000 (around $2,700 typical), is the only way to know what one lot in Butler County will actually do.

What it costs to find out, versus to ignore it

With Butler County, MO rating "Low", a geotechnical report is still worthwhile before a build, just less urgent than in a high-risk county. 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.

Where this sits nationally

Nationally, Butler County, MO is the 1,958-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Missouri alone it ranks 94 of 114. Butler County covers 695 square miles and counts 41,814 residents.

Before you act on this

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Randolph County, WV and Smyth County, VA 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

More of Missouri

Every county in Missouri is on this site, including Ray County, MO and Buchanan County, MO. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.