Ogemaw County, MI Shrink-Swell Risk

Ogemaw County, MI's soil, for shrink-swell risk

Low

Ogemaw County, MI: USDA's soil survey rates 71.9% of the county "Low" for shrink-swell potential (1.93% 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 Ogemaw County's reading doesn't cover

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

What it costs to find out, versus to ignore it

With Ogemaw County, MI 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.

Ogemaw County's rank among Michigan counties

Nationally, Ogemaw County, MI is the 2,052-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Michigan alone it ranks 17 of 83. Ogemaw County covers 564 square miles and counts 20,985 residents.

For contrast

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Saline County, NE and Mathews County, VA 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 Michigan

Every county in Michigan is on this site, including Livingston County, MI and Benzie County, MI. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.