Woodbury County, IA Shrink-Swell Risk
Woodbury County's SSURGO shrink-swell reading
Moderate
In Woodbury County, IA, 45.4% of the surveyed soil carries a "Moderate" shrink-swell rating, 3.6% linear extensibility on average. 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.
Before you rely on this for one address
Woodbury County's reading is an average across the whole county, not a promise about any one lot inside it. A site-specific soil report, usually $1,000-$5,000, is what an engineer would actually pull before designing a foundation on a lot in Woodbury County.
Budgeting for Woodbury County, IA
Woodbury 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.
How Woodbury County, IA compares
Among the 3,085 rated counties on this site, Woodbury County, IA ranks 778 most-constrained nationally, and 59 of 99 within Iowa. The county spans 873 square miles, home to 107,257 people.
For contrast
Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Sunflower County, MS and Oliver County, ND 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 Iowa
Every county in Iowa is on this site, including Allamakee County, IA and Marshall County, IA. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.