Hopkins County, KY Shrink-Swell Risk

Hopkins County, KY's soil, for shrink-swell risk

Low

Hopkins County, KY: USDA's soil survey rates 86.8% of the county "Low" for shrink-swell potential (2.3% 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 Hopkins County's reading doesn't cover

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

What it costs to find out, versus to ignore it

With Hopkins County, KY 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, Hopkins County, KY is the 1,724-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Kentucky alone it ranks 68 of 120. The county spans 542 square miles, home to 45,218 people.

See how another county compares

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Scotts Bluff County, NE and Stonewall 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 Kentucky

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