Caroline County, VA's soil, for a septic absorption field

Very limited

In Caroline County, VA, 69.7% of the surveyed land carries a "Very limited" rating for a standard septic drain field. That reading means a conventional system is a poor bet here - 69.7% of Caroline County lands in the strictest "very limited" bucket USDA uses. Caroline County covers 527.365 square miles and counts 33,477 residents.

This is a county figure, not a parcel figure

This is a countywide, area-weighted figure across every soil survey map unit in Caroline County, VA - never a reading for one specific parcel. A site-specific perc test, usually $750-$1,850, is what a health department will actually require before permitting a lot in Caroline County.

System cost, conventional vs. engineered

Given Caroline County's rating, plan for the engineered-system range rather than the conventional one. The engineered-system range, $10,000-$40,000 (mound or aerobic treatment), is the more realistic number to plan around, against $3,000-$8,000 for a conventional system on the rare lot that passes.

Caroline County's rank among Virginia counties

Nationally, Caroline County, VA is the 2,472-most-constrained of 3,058 rated counties for septic soil. Within Virginia alone it ranks 71 of 110.

Related guides

How this rating is built, and its real limits · Conventional vs. engineered septic systems