Otter Tail County, MN's soil, for a septic absorption field

Very limited

71.2% of Otter Tail County, MN's surveyed soil comes back "Very limited" in USDA's own SSURGO data, the county's dominant condition for a septic absorption field. Expect the ground itself to work against a plain gravity system; USDA's strictest bucket alone covers 71.2% of the county. Otter Tail County covers 1,971.636 square miles and counts 60,884 residents.

This is a county figure, not a parcel figure

USDA's survey covers the whole of Otter Tail County, MN at once, not any single address. A site-specific perc test, usually $750-$1,850, is what a health department will actually require before permitting a lot in Otter Tail County.

System cost, conventional vs. engineered

Given Otter Tail 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.

How Otter Tail County, MN compares

Nationally, Otter Tail County, MN is the 2,430-most-constrained of 3,058 rated counties for septic soil. Within Minnesota alone it ranks 82 of 86.

Before you act on this

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