King George County, VA Shrink-Swell Risk

What King George County, VA's soil means for a foundation

Low

USDA's SSURGO data puts King George County, VA's soil at "Low" shrink-swell potential, an area-weighted linear extensibility of 2.16% across 75.8% of the county's surveyed land. That's as favorable a county-level reading as this dataset produces - standard foundation practice, pending one lot's own geotechnical report.

This is a county figure, not a lot figure

USDA's survey covers the whole of King George County, VA at once, not any single address. A local geotechnical report, typically $1,000-$5,000 (around $2,700 typical), is the only way to know what one lot in King George County will actually do.

Report cost vs. repair cost

With King George 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.

How King George County, VA compares

Nationally, King George County, VA is the 1,835-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Virginia alone it ranks 66 of 114. King George County, VA is 180 square miles with a population of 28,816.

For contrast

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. San Bernardino County, CA and Saline County, KS 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 Augusta County, VA and Petersburg city, VA. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.