Pike County, AL Shrink-Swell Risk

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

Low

Pike County, AL: USDA's soil survey rates 88% of the county "Low" for shrink-swell potential (1.82% linear extensibility). Among the 3,144 counties on this site, that's the clean result: little shrink-swell movement, standard construction the likely outcome.

What Pike County's reading doesn't cover

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

What it costs to find out, versus to ignore it

With Pike 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.

How Pike County, AL compares

Nationally, Pike County, AL is the 2,151-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Alabama alone it ranks 37 of 67. Pike County covers 672 square miles and counts 33,124 residents.

For contrast

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Mahaska County, IA and Pickens County, SC 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 DeKalb County, AL and Cullman County, AL. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.