Decatur County, TN Shrink-Swell Risk

Decatur County, TN's soil, for shrink-swell risk

Low

Decatur County, TN: USDA's soil survey rates 80% of the county "Low" for shrink-swell potential (1.99% linear extensibility). Among the 3,144 counties on this site, that's the clean result: little shrink-swell movement, standard construction the likely outcome.

What Decatur County's reading doesn't cover

Two lots a mile apart in Decatur 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 Decatur County.

What it costs to find out, versus to ignore it

With Decatur County, TN 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.

Decatur County's rank among Tennessee counties

Nationally, Decatur County, TN is the 1,998-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Tennessee alone it ranks 51 of 95. Decatur County covers 334 square miles and counts 11,800 residents.

See how another county compares

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Scott County, TN and Uinta County, WY 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 Tennessee

Every county in Tennessee is on this site, including Campbell County, TN and Claiborne County, TN. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.