SOIL DEPTH PROFILE EXPLORER

See the layers.
Keep the gaps visible.

A soil number is more useful when you know its depth. Build a view of the upper 100 cm of one report, without filling the unknowns with guesses.

On-device calculationNo address neededNo automatic saving

01 / ENTER ONE PROFILE

What does your report show?

1 / 12 layers

Depths are in centimeters, from 0 to 100. Enter LE as a percentage from 0 to 30%, the NRCS valid entry range; do not substitute clay content or plasticity index. Leave LE blank when it is not reported.

Your entries — not independently verified.

Use a single soil component and a single report. This is not a method for combining different properties or map-unit component percentages.

02 / UNDERSTAND THE METHOD

A worked example, not a property report.

These numbers are invented solely to demonstrate the calculation. The tool does not query or authenticate a soil survey.

Keep the unknown interval in view

Suppose the report gives 2% LE from 0–20 cm, no LE from 20–55 cm, and 7.5% LE from 55–100 cm. Only 20 + 45 = 65 cm have values. The other 35 cm remain unrated.

A blank LE field is different from a reported value of zero. Zero is included in rated thickness and in the arithmetic. Missing LE is not treated as zero, copied from a neighboring layer or extrapolated through a gap.

Show the highest band separately

The example's highest entered LE is 7.5%, in the High screening band used by GroundShiftCheck. We retain that result separately. It does not say where a foundation sits within a map unit or whether a structure has a defect.

Inspect the weighted mean

Rated-thickness arithmetic(20 × 2 + 45 × 7.5) ÷ 65

377.5 ÷ 65 = approximately 5.81% LE

This number describes only the entered, rated intervals. It is not an engineering interpretation for the full 100 cm, a parcel-level shrink–swell rating, a chance of damage or an estimate of inches of movement.

Two profiles can have the same mean and very different layer arrangements. Keep the individual intervals, highest value and missing thickness with any exported summary. Do not use the mean alone to choose a foundation or a repair.

Prepare the depths consistently

All rows refer to the same ground-surface zero and use centimeters. Convert any source depths in inches to centimeters before entering them; do not mix units between rows. One inch is exactly 2.54 cm.

For a layer continuing below 100 cm, enter only its intersection with the 0–100 cm window and retain the original depth in your source document. The explorer rejects overlapping intervals instead of arbitrarily deciding which value should win. Touching boundaries, such as 0–20 and 20–55 cm, are allowed.

Know what an export contains

JSON and CSV contain the numeric layers, visible coverage gaps, calculation, source label and limitations. No address, notebook or saved comparison is attached. The export timestamp records when the file was prepared, not when a source was sampled or refreshed.

Entries stay in this tab; the explorer does not write to local storage or contact a data provider. Leaving or reloading the page clears the inputs. Export intentionally before leaving, and review the resulting file before sharing it.

Have a map, not a layer table?

Keep mapped components separate. Check a location for public-source context, or use the single-value interpreter when you only have one LE number.

Check a location ↗Interpret one value ↗

Screening boundaries: Low below 3%; Moderate from 3% to below 6%; High from 6% to below 9%; Very high from 9% through the NRCS valid-entry maximum of 30%. See the underlying LE definitions, our methodology and source register. The arithmetic and presentation above are our own.