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