Goochland County, VA Shrink-Swell Risk

Goochland County, VA's soil, for shrink-swell risk

Low

Goochland County, VA: USDA's soil survey rates 77.3% of the county "Low" for shrink-swell potential (2.23% 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 Goochland County's reading doesn't cover

Two lots a mile apart in Goochland 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 Goochland County will actually do.

What it costs to find out, versus to ignore it

With Goochland County, VA 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.

Goochland County's rank among Virginia counties

Nationally, Goochland County, VA is the 1,774-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Virginia alone it ranks 59 of 114. The county spans 282 square miles, home to 28,223 people.

Before you act on this

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Leavenworth County, KS and Greenbrier County, WV 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 Virginia

Every county in Virginia is on this site, including Martinsville city, VA and Franklin County, VA. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.