Mercer County, ND Shrink-Swell Risk

What Mercer County, ND's soil means for a foundation

Moderate

USDA's SSURGO data puts Mercer County, ND's soil at "Moderate" shrink-swell potential, an area-weighted linear extensibility of 3.05% across 55.1% of the county's surveyed land. A real but modest amount of movement - standard foundations usually hold up, but drainage and moisture control around the foundation still matter more than on low-risk soil.

This is a county figure, not a lot figure

USDA's survey covers the whole of Mercer County, ND 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 Mercer County will actually do.

Report cost vs. repair cost

With Mercer County, ND rating "Moderate", 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, Mercer County, ND is the 1,161-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within North Dakota alone it ranks 31 of 53. Mercer County covers 1,043 square miles and counts 8,348 residents.

See how another county compares

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Boone County, KY and LaGrange County, IN 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 North Dakota

Every county in North Dakota is on this site, including Golden Valley County, ND and Dickey County, ND. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.