Henrico County, VA: the USDA septic-suitability picture

Very limited

USDA puts Henrico County, VA at "Very limited" for septic absorption fields, the dominant reading across 72.5% of the county's soil. This is the reading that pushes a project toward an engineered system rather than a conventional one, and it covers 72.5% of Henrico County's land. For scale: 233.665 square miles and 338,696 people call Henrico County home.

Before you rely on this for one lot

This is a countywide, area-weighted figure across every soil survey map unit in Henrico County, VA - never a reading for one specific parcel. The real answer for one lot is still a site-specific perc test, running about $750-$1,850 (typically near $1,300).

Budgeting for a system in Henrico County, VA

Henrico County's soil reading pushes the likely outcome toward an engineered system rather than a conventional one. Conventional systems run $3,000-$8,000 where they pass; where they don't, engineered alternatives (mound or aerobic treatment, whichever the health department requires) run $10,000-$40,000 - budget toward the higher figure until a perc test says otherwise.

How Henrico County, VA compares

Among the 3,058 rated counties on this site, Henrico County, VA ranks 2,383 most-constrained nationally, and 65 of 110 within Virginia.

Before you act on this

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