Putnam County, OH Shrink-Swell Risk
What Putnam County, OH's soil means for a foundation
Moderate
USDA's SSURGO data puts Putnam County, OH's soil at "Moderate" shrink-swell potential, an area-weighted linear extensibility of 5.2% across 51.8% 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 Putnam County, OH at once, not any single address. The real answer for one lot is still a site-specific geotechnical report, running about $1,000-$5,000 (typically near $2,700).
Report cost vs. repair cost
With Putnam County, OH 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.
Putnam County's rank among Ohio counties
Nationally, Putnam County, OH is the 254-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Ohio alone it ranks 2 of 88. The county spans 483 square miles, home to 34,206 people.
See how another county compares
Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Knox County, KY and Butte County, SD 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 Ohio
Every county in Ohio is on this site, including Allen County, OH and Sandusky County, OH. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.