Lamar County, AL Shrink-Swell Risk

Lamar County, AL's soil, for shrink-swell risk

Low

Lamar County, AL: USDA's soil survey rates 97.7% of the county "Low" for shrink-swell potential (2.05% linear extensibility). That's as favorable a county-level reading as this dataset produces - standard foundation practice, pending one lot's own geotechnical report.

What Lamar County's reading doesn't cover

Two lots a mile apart in Lamar 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 Lamar County.

What it costs to find out, versus to ignore it

With Lamar County, AL 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.

Lamar County's rank among Alabama counties

Nationally, Lamar County, AL is the 1,940-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Alabama alone it ranks 27 of 67. The county spans 605 square miles, home to 13,543 people.

For contrast

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Iron County, MO and Scott County, MN 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 Alabama

Every county in Alabama is on this site, including Clay County, AL and Fayette County, AL. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.