West Virginia: basement moisture and foundation risk by county
55 counties, ranked by our combined index. Highest combined risk is Clay County (49), lowest is Grant County (30). The worst soil for foundation cracks specifically is in Morgan County.
| County | Index | Moisture | Cracks | Water table | Region |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clay County | 49 | 37 | 53 | 66 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Marion County | 49 | 38 | 52 | 66 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Calhoun County | 47 | 37 | 48 | 66 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Roane County | 47 | 37 | 48 | 66 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Summers County | 43 | 37 | 49 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Marshall County | 42 | 37 | 45 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Pleasants County | 42 | 37 | 46 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Boone County | 41 | 34 | 48 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Hampshire County | 41 | 34 | 48 | 46 | Ridge and Valley |
| Ritchie County | 41 | 37 | 28 | 66 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Wetzel County | 41 | 34 | 47 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Wirt County | 41 | 35 | 46 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Fayette County | 40 | 34 | 43 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Logan County | 40 | 37 | 51 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Morgan County | 40 | 35 | 54 | 30 | Ridge and Valley |
| Preston County | 40 | 38 | 39 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Putnam County | 40 | 37 | 39 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Lewis County | 39 | 38 | 47 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Monroe County | 39 | 36 | 39 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Tyler County | 39 | 36 | 39 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Webster County | 39 | 36 | 39 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Wood County | 39 | 36 | 49 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Wyoming County | 39 | 34 | 53 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Jefferson County | 38 | 35 | 47 | 30 | Ridge and Valley |
| Lincoln County | 38 | 34 | 48 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| McDowell County | 38 | 37 | 44 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Randolph County | 38 | 35 | 49 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Doddridge County | 37 | 33 | 35 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Hardy County | 37 | 34 | 35 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Mason County | 37 | 34 | 36 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Mingo County | 37 | 36 | 52 | 16 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Monongalia County | 37 | 37 | 43 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Pendleton County | 37 | 37 | 31 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Taylor County | 37 | 34 | 45 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Tucker County | 37 | 34 | 46 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Braxton County | 36 | 35 | 29 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Cabell County | 36 | 34 | 31 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Nicholas County | 36 | 36 | 29 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Raleigh County | 36 | 34 | 43 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Brooke County | 35 | 34 | 30 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Mercer County | 35 | 34 | 41 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Pocahontas County | 35 | 35 | 28 | 46 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Greenbrier County | 34 | 35 | 35 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Kanawha County | 34 | 36 | 35 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Barbour County | 33 | 34 | 34 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Berkeley County | 33 | 34 | 33 | 30 | Ridge and Valley |
| Harrison County | 33 | 34 | 34 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Jackson County | 33 | 34 | 33 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Mineral County | 33 | 36 | 31 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Wayne County | 33 | 37 | 28 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Gilmer County | 32 | 36 | 29 | 30 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Upshur County | 32 | 34 | 42 | 16 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Hancock County | 31 | 34 | 39 | 16 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Grant County | 30 | 34 | 36 | 16 | Appalachian Plateau |
| Ohio County | 30 | 33 | 37 | 16 | Appalachian Plateau |
Values from USDA NRCS SSURGO where available, otherwise our regional model — each county page states which. Methodology.
The physiographic regions inside West Virginia
State lines are political; soil follows geology. These are the distinct ground types inside West Virginia and why each behaves the way it does.
Appalachian Plateau
Water travels over bedrock under a thin skin of colluvium. A house cut into a hillside has an entire catchment behind its uphill wall — what decides the outcome here is a daylight drain, not a coating.
51 counties: Barbour County, Boone County, Braxton County, Brooke County, Cabell County, Calhoun County, Clay County, Doddridge County, Fayette County, Gilmer County, Grant County, Greenbrier County, Hancock County, Hardy County, Harrison County, Jackson County, Kanawha County, Lewis County, Lincoln County, Logan County, Marion County, Marshall County, Mason County, McDowell County, Mercer County, Mineral County, Mingo County, Monongalia County, Monroe County, Nicholas County, Ohio County, Pendleton County, Pleasants County, Pocahontas County, Preston County, Putnam County, Raleigh County, Randolph County, Ritchie County, Roane County, Summers County, Taylor County, Tucker County, Tyler County, Upshur County, Wayne County, Webster County, Wetzel County, Wirt County, Wood County, Wyoming County
Ridge and Valley
Limestone valleys mean karst: permeability is excellent until it is not. Sinkhole activity is an underrated cause of foundation failure here.
4 counties: Berkeley County, Hampshire County, Jefferson County, Morgan County
Page data updated