Clayton County, IA Shrink-Swell Risk

Clayton County, IA's soil, for shrink-swell risk

Moderate

Clayton County, IA: USDA's soil survey rates 79.5% of the county "Moderate" for shrink-swell potential (3.19% 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 Clayton County's reading doesn't cover

Two lots a mile apart in Clayton 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 Clayton County.

What it costs to find out, versus to ignore it

With Clayton County, IA rating "Moderate", 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.

Clayton County's rank among Iowa counties

Nationally, Clayton County, IA is the 1,052-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Iowa alone it ranks 73 of 99. Clayton County, IA is 778 square miles with a population of 16,931.

Before you act on this

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Choctaw County, MS and Polk County, TX 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 Iowa

Every county in Iowa is on this site, including Butler County, IA and Ringgold County, IA. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.