Building A Rock Retaining Wall

The wide base needs to go back into the slope at least half as wide as the wall is tall.

Building a rock retaining wall.

In other words for a four foot wall two feet wide. Without this simple footing the rocks have a tendency to move. Anything taller should be handled by professionals. Dig a ditch the length of the wall that is about a foot wide and 8 to 12 inches 20 5 cm 30 5 cm below the ground level.

To build a natural dry stone retaining wall prepare the site. Building a retaining wall is suitable for diyers as long as the wall is a maximum of 3 feet tall in most areas. The easiest way to build a stone retaining wall is to use the dry stack method that requires no mortar between stones and does not need a concrete footing like mortared walls do. Design and build your retaining wall to slope at a minimum rate of.

Try to cut the ditch into native soil rather than loose added soil as the former provides a more stable foundation for the wall. This makes your rock wall into a 50 year wall. Avoid having downspouts pointed at the retaining wall and if it s against the house keep soil and mulch well below the siding. Lay high quality stones and use a geotextile backing to ensure the wall lasts a long time.

How to build a short retaining wall this 2 retaining wall is a great architectural element that also serves a purpose to keep dirt from a sloping yard from going into the driveway. This ditch will act as the wall s footing and prevent the rocks from sliding forward due to pressure from the earth behind. Self stacking concrete blocks make building a sturdy retaining wall a much simpler diy project. Plan for good drainage proper width height ratio and distance between tiers.

A wall that leans into the soil it retains is less likely to be pushed outward by soil pressure than a plain old vertical wall.