BasementSoil

Nebraska: basement moisture and foundation risk by county

93 counties, ranked by our combined index. Highest combined risk is Cedar County (51), lowest is Rock County (15). The worst soil for foundation cracks specifically is in Cedar County.

Where in Nebraska the ground is worse

Every county in the state, coloured by the soil values below. Click a county to open its report; switch what the colour means with the buttons. The pattern is geology, not administration — risk stops at the edge of a physiographic region, not at a county line.

Adams County, NE — combined 39/100, moisture 39, movement 46, water table 30Antelope County, NE — combined 44/100, moisture 39, movement 50, water table 46Arthur County, NE — combined 18/100, moisture 20, movement 7, water table 30Banner County, NE — combined 31/100, moisture 32, movement 40, water table 16Blaine County, NE — combined 21/100, moisture 21, movement 4, water table 46Boone County, NE — combined 41/100, moisture 38, movement 62, water table 16Box Butte County, NE — combined 35/100, moisture 31, movement 55, water table 16Boyd County, NE — combined 38/100, moisture 37, movement 46, water table 30Brown County, NE — combined 24/100, moisture 23, movement 11, water table 46Buffalo County, NE — combined 37/100, moisture 37, movement 53, water table 16Burt County, NE — combined 33/100, moisture 33, movement 34, water table 30Butler County, NE — combined 46/100, moisture 39, movement 57, water table 46Cass County, NE — combined 29/100, moisture 34, movement 21, water table 30Cedar County, NE — combined 51/100, moisture 40, movement 69, water table 46Chase County, NE — combined 37/100, moisture 35, movement 45, water table 30Cherry County, NE — combined 21/100, moisture 21, movement 4, water table 46Cheyenne County, NE — combined 36/100, moisture 32, movement 55, water table 16Clay County, NE — combined 42/100, moisture 39, movement 64, water table 16Colfax County, NE — combined 42/100, moisture 38, movement 57, water table 30Cuming County, NE — combined 30/100, moisture 35, movement 34, water table 16Custer County, NE — combined 24/100, moisture 21, movement 11, water table 46Dakota County, NE — combined 36/100, moisture 37, movement 40, water table 30Dawes County, NE — combined 37/100, moisture 33, movement 47, water table 30Dawson County, NE — combined 42/100, moisture 40, movement 42, water table 46Deuel County, NE — combined 32/100, moisture 32, movement 32, water table 30Dixon County, NE — combined 35/100, moisture 33, movement 40, water table 30Dodge County, NE — combined 35/100, moisture 35, movement 40, water table 30Douglas County, NE — combined 32/100, moisture 37, movement 38, water table 16Dundy County, NE — combined 29/100, moisture 30, movement 27, water table 30Fillmore County, NE — combined 44/100, moisture 38, movement 63, water table 30Franklin County, NE — combined 44/100, moisture 36, movement 66, water table 30Frontier County, NE — combined 43/100, moisture 39, movement 48, water table 46Furnas County, NE — combined 43/100, moisture 37, movement 48, water table 46Gage County, NE — combined 31/100, moisture 35, movement 27, water table 30Garden County, NE — combined 24/100, moisture 22, movement 10, water table 46Garfield County, NE — combined 18/100, moisture 21, movement 5, water table 30Gosper County, NE — combined 50/100, moisture 40, movement 67, water table 46Grant County, NE — combined 18/100, moisture 20, movement 5, water table 30Greeley County, NE — combined 36/100, moisture 37, movement 48, water table 16Hall County, NE — combined 38/100, moisture 36, movement 47, water table 30Hamilton County, NE — combined 42/100, moisture 38, movement 56, water table 30Harlan County, NE — combined 41/100, moisture 35, movement 58, water table 30Hayes County, NE — combined 31/100, moisture 32, movement 29, water table 30Hitchcock County, NE — combined 30/100, moisture 31, movement 29, water table 30Holt County, NE — combined 45/100, moisture 36, movement 56, water table 46Hooker County, NE — combined 21/100, moisture 20, movement 4, water table 46Howard County, NE — combined 47/100, moisture 37, movement 61, water table 46Jefferson County, NE — combined 47/100, moisture 36, movement 62, water table 46Johnson County, NE — combined 32/100, moisture 33, movement 32, water table 30Kearney County, NE — combined 40/100, moisture 37, movement 63, water table 16Keith County, NE — combined 31/100, moisture 30, movement 43, water table 16Keya Paha County, NE — combined 18/100, moisture 21, movement 5, water table 30Kimball County, NE — combined 34/100, moisture 33, movement 39, water table 30Knox County, NE — combined 39/100, moisture 37, movement 48, water table 30Lancaster County, NE — combined 32/100, moisture 34, movement 41, water table 16Lincoln County, NE — combined 37/100, moisture 36, movement 55, water table 16Logan County, NE — combined 21/100, moisture 21, movement 4, water table 46Loup County, NE — combined 27/100, moisture 22, movement 5, water table 66Madison County, NE — combined 50/100, moisture 40, movement 68, water table 46McPherson County, NE — combined 23/100, moisture 22, movement 8, water table 46Merrick County, NE — combined 40/100, moisture 38, movement 60, water table 16Morrill County, NE — combined 30/100, moisture 30, movement 30, water table 30Nance County, NE — combined 40/100, moisture 37, movement 39, water table 46Nemaha County, NE — combined 26/100, moisture 35, movement 21, water table 16Nuckolls County, NE — combined 38/100, moisture 37, movement 46, water table 30Otoe County, NE — combined 32/100, moisture 35, movement 28, water table 30Pawnee County, NE — combined 32/100, moisture 33, movement 32, water table 30Perkins County, NE — combined 37/100, moisture 35, movement 44, water table 30Phelps County, NE — combined 49/100, moisture 40, movement 63, water table 46Pierce County, NE — combined 40/100, moisture 36, movement 42, water table 46Platte County, NE — combined 49/100, moisture 37, movement 69, water table 46Polk County, NE — combined 44/100, moisture 38, movement 63, water table 30Red Willow County, NE — combined 40/100, moisture 39, movement 38, water table 46Richardson County, NE — combined 34/100, moisture 34, movement 38, water table 30Rock County, NE — combined 15/100, moisture 20, movement 7, water table 16Saline County, NE — combined 48/100, moisture 38, movement 63, water table 46Sarpy County, NE — combined 35/100, moisture 35, movement 39, water table 30Saunders County, NE — combined 31/100, moisture 33, movement 29, water table 30Scotts Bluff County, NE — combined 26/100, moisture 31, movement 27, water table 16Seward County, NE — combined 43/100, moisture 36, movement 62, water table 30Sheridan County, NE — combined 16/100, moisture 20, movement 9, water table 16Sherman County, NE — combined 48/100, moisture 36, movement 66, water table 46Sioux County, NE — combined 26/100, moisture 30, movement 27, water table 16Stanton County, NE — combined 43/100, moisture 39, movement 57, water table 30Thayer County, NE — combined 37/100, moisture 39, movement 48, water table 16Thomas County, NE — combined 15/100, moisture 20, movement 7, water table 16Thurston County, NE — combined 31/100, moisture 33, movement 29, water table 30Valley County, NE — combined 43/100, moisture 37, movement 50, water table 46Washington County, NE — combined 31/100, moisture 33, movement 30, water table 30Wayne County, NE — combined 43/100, moisture 36, movement 62, water table 30Webster County, NE — combined 42/100, moisture 35, movement 60, water table 30Wheeler County, NE — combined 37/100, moisture 37, movement 42, water table 30York County, NE — combined 35/100, moisture 37, movement 37, water table 30
  • Low (0–27)
  • Moderate (28–49)
  • Elevated (50–74)
  • High (75–100)

County boundaries: US Census TIGER (public domain), simplified for display. Colours are our index from USDA SSURGO fields where loaded, otherwise from our regional model — each county page states which. How the index is calculated.

CountyIndexMoistureCracksWater tableRegion
Cedar County51406946Smoky Hills and central plains
Gosper County50406746Smoky Hills and central plains
Madison County50406846Smoky Hills and central plains
Phelps County49406346Smoky Hills and central plains
Platte County49376946Smoky Hills and central plains
Saline County48386346Smoky Hills and central plains
Sherman County48366646Smoky Hills and central plains
Howard County47376146Smoky Hills and central plains
Jefferson County47366246Smoky Hills and central plains
Butler County46395746Smoky Hills and central plains
Holt County45365646Smoky Hills and central plains
Antelope County44395046Smoky Hills and central plains
Fillmore County44386330Smoky Hills and central plains
Franklin County44366630Smoky Hills and central plains
Polk County44386330Smoky Hills and central plains
Frontier County43394846Smoky Hills and central plains
Furnas County43374846Smoky Hills and central plains
Seward County43366230Smoky Hills and central plains
Stanton County43395730Smoky Hills and central plains
Valley County43375046Smoky Hills and central plains
Wayne County43366230Smoky Hills and central plains
Clay County42396416Smoky Hills and central plains
Colfax County42385730Smoky Hills and central plains
Dawson County42404246Smoky Hills and central plains
Hamilton County42385630Smoky Hills and central plains
Webster County42356030Smoky Hills and central plains
Boone County41386216Smoky Hills and central plains
Harlan County41355830Smoky Hills and central plains
Kearney County40376316Smoky Hills and central plains
Merrick County40386016Smoky Hills and central plains
Nance County40373946Smoky Hills and central plains
Pierce County40364246Smoky Hills and central plains
Red Willow County40393846Smoky Hills and central plains
Adams County39394630Smoky Hills and central plains
Knox County39374830Smoky Hills and central plains
Boyd County38374630Smoky Hills and central plains
Hall County38364730Smoky Hills and central plains
Nuckolls County38374630Smoky Hills and central plains
Buffalo County37375316Smoky Hills and central plains
Chase County37354530High Plains
Dawes County37334730High Plains
Lincoln County37365516Smoky Hills and central plains
Perkins County37354430High Plains
Thayer County37394816Smoky Hills and central plains
Wheeler County37374230Smoky Hills and central plains
Cheyenne County36325516High Plains
Dakota County36374030Loess hills
Greeley County36374816Smoky Hills and central plains
Box Butte County35315516High Plains
Dixon County35334030Loess hills
Dodge County35354030Loess hills
Sarpy County35353930Loess hills
York County35373730Smoky Hills and central plains
Kimball County34333930High Plains
Richardson County34343830Loess hills
Burt County33333430Loess hills
Deuel County32323230High Plains
Douglas County32373816Loess hills
Johnson County32333230Loess hills
Lancaster County32344116Loess hills
Otoe County32352830Loess hills
Pawnee County32333230Loess hills
Banner County31324016High Plains
Gage County31352730Loess hills
Hayes County31322930High Plains
Keith County31304316High Plains
Saunders County31332930Loess hills
Thurston County31332930Loess hills
Washington County31333030Loess hills
Cuming County30353416Loess hills
Hitchcock County30312930High Plains
Morrill County30303030High Plains
Cass County29342130Loess hills
Dundy County29302730High Plains
Loup County2722566Nebraska Sand Hills
Nemaha County26352116Loess hills
Scotts Bluff County26312716High Plains
Sioux County26302716High Plains
Brown County24231146Nebraska Sand Hills
Custer County24211146Nebraska Sand Hills
Garden County24221046Nebraska Sand Hills
McPherson County2322846Nebraska Sand Hills
Blaine County2121446Nebraska Sand Hills
Cherry County2121446Nebraska Sand Hills
Hooker County2120446Nebraska Sand Hills
Logan County2121446Nebraska Sand Hills
Arthur County1820730Nebraska Sand Hills
Garfield County1821530Nebraska Sand Hills
Grant County1820530Nebraska Sand Hills
Keya Paha County1821530Nebraska Sand Hills
Sheridan County1620916Nebraska Sand Hills
Rock County1520716Nebraska Sand Hills
Thomas County1520716Nebraska Sand Hills

Values from USDA NRCS SSURGO where available, otherwise our regional model — each county page states which. Methodology.

The physiographic regions inside Nebraska

State lines are political; soil follows geology. These are the distinct ground types inside Nebraska and why each behaves the way it does.

Smoky Hills and central plains

Middling values on all three axes. The commonest real problem here is not the soil but ground that slopes towards the house.

44 counties: Adams County, Antelope County, Boone County, Boyd County, Buffalo County, Butler County, Cedar County, Clay County, Colfax County, Dawson County, Fillmore County, Franklin County, Frontier County, Furnas County, Gosper County, Greeley County, Hall County, Hamilton County, Harlan County, Holt County, Howard County, Jefferson County, Kearney County, Knox County, Lincoln County, Madison County, Merrick County, Nance County, Nuckolls County, Phelps County, Pierce County, Platte County, Polk County, Red Willow County, Saline County, Seward County, Sherman County, Stanton County, Thayer County, Valley County, Wayne County, Webster County, Wheeler County, York County

Loess hills

Loess is permeable and the water table is deep, but it is prone to erosion and to collapse under load when wetted — a different failure mode from expansive clay. A broken downspout can undermine a loess footing.

18 counties: Burt County, Cass County, Cuming County, Dakota County, Dixon County, Dodge County, Douglas County, Gage County, Johnson County, Lancaster County, Nemaha County, Otoe County, Pawnee County, Richardson County, Sarpy County, Saunders County, Thurston County, Washington County

Nebraska Sand Hills

Almost pure sand with essentially no clay. Volume-change cracking does not happen here and neither does sustained hydrostatic pressure. A damp basement in the Sand Hills is condensation or plumbing, and anyone selling drainage for it should be asked to explain the soil.

16 counties: Arthur County, Blaine County, Brown County, Cherry County, Custer County, Garden County, Garfield County, Grant County, Hooker County, Keya Paha County, Logan County, Loup County, McPherson County, Rock County, Sheridan County, Thomas County

High Plains

The water table is tens of metres down and rainfall is low. Basement damp here is nearly always condensation or a failed supply line rather than groundwater — and that distinction is worth thousands of dollars.

15 counties: Banner County, Box Butte County, Chase County, Cheyenne County, Dawes County, Deuel County, Dundy County, Hayes County, Hitchcock County, Keith County, Kimball County, Morrill County, Perkins County, Scotts Bluff County, Sioux County

Page data updated