Orange County, VA Shrink-Swell Risk

Orange County's SSURGO shrink-swell reading

Low

In Orange County, VA, 80.3% of the surveyed soil carries a "Low" shrink-swell rating, 2.3% linear extensibility on average. Among the 3,144 counties on this site, that's the clean result: little shrink-swell movement, standard construction the likely outcome.

Before you rely on this for one address

Orange County's reading is an average across the whole county, not a promise about any one lot inside it. The real answer for one lot is still a site-specific geotechnical report, running about $1,000-$5,000 (typically near $2,700).

Budgeting for Orange County, VA

Orange County's soil reading points toward standard foundation practice as the likely outcome, not the exception. 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

Among the 3,085 rated counties on this site, Orange County, VA ranks 1,725 most-constrained nationally, and 52 of 114 within Virginia. The county spans 341 square miles, home to 38,986 people.

For contrast

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Union County, FL and Clinton County, OH 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

Elsewhere in Virginia

Every county in Virginia is on this site, including Roanoke city, VA and Giles County, VA. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.