Advise on retaining wall(lengthy)

[aalleexx]

Need input guys.(and gals).
I have a terribly sloping yard on one side. I have part chain link fence and privacy fence on that side. I need a four foot retaining wall to even out the slope. Both sections of fence are ours. Already discussed with neighbors and they are okay with it as we want to put french drains to run water to back side of property to creek(also on our lot). Both of their yards flood as is with run-off. Also want to put privacy fence on top of wall. Anticipate needing lots of dirt to be brought in for the leveling. Total length of wall would be approximately 90 feet. We live inside the city limits in an East Texas town. What are we looking at? Any constructive advise greatly appreciated.
P.S. We are not very wealthy!

 

[Higgins]

You need to check in with your local town, as there may be restrictions as to how much fill you can put in as it may require a permit, and need to address how it will affect water run-off.

AL

 

[DekeT]

Hire an engineering company.

 

[Kevin54]

put pics up and lets see what you're dealing with.

 

[sands35]

Codes vary by local area. For me, a wall less than 48" tall from grade do not require an engineer, taller walls do.

It is not a complex job, but the details of the drainage are important. It is in the range of a DIY job if you use timber or pre-fabbed block. (though you may need a mini skid/loader/excavator - some of the pre-fabbed blocks can weight over 70-100 lbs.)

 

[woodrail]

Got a few threads on the board to show you how NOT to do this!

 

[volleyball]

I can see why the down hill neighbor would be ok with you solving their problem. Without pics, we can be of no help, just a bunch of comments.

What do you get out of a more leveled yard? Are you going to use the space? Maybe planting a bunch of low growing plants that need little maintenance would be cheaper and easier.
When you get fill, do you know where it came from. You don't want brownfield fill over your well or the neighbors.

 

[Leaflessshadetree]

Hard to tell with out pictures. Especially since you mention a creek have you checked with the city, county? Many places have resources dealing with water management.

 

[LB-1911]

Need input guys.(and gals).
I have a terribly sloping yard on one side.
I have part chain link fence and privacy fence on that side.
I need a four foot retaining wall to even out the slope.
Both sections of fence are ours.
Already discussed with neighbors and they are okay with it as we want to put french drains to run water to back side of property to creek(also on our lot).
Both of their yards flood as is with run-off.
Also want to put privacy fence on top of wall.
Anticipate needing lots of dirt to be brought in for the leveling.
Total length of wall would be approximately 90 feet.
We live inside the city limits in an East Texas town.
What are we looking at? Any constructive advise greatly appreciated.
P.S. We are not very wealthy!

You need to check with the Bldg Dept / permitting office of your East Texas municipality.

A site plan to include the adjoining neighbors lots would be your first step.

 

[jkwilson]

Buy a laser level. It is a huge timesaver over any other kind of level. I built a wall 153 ft long a couple of years ago. After two days trying to deal with an optical transit, I sucked it up and bought the laser for $400 on CL. I'd pay twice that for one before I built a wall without it again.

Getting the base compacted and flat is the key to a solid and nice looking wall. With a long wall, anything out of level will show. I know of several "professionally" installed walls that aren't as level as mine. I smirk when I drive past them.

You'll want a plate compactor and Bobcat around at times. I rented the compactor, but I own a Bobcat. You can get by with rental or borrowing.

Choose your block carefully. Low quality block is hard to set square because they aren't uniform.

I got a surprising amount of fill dirt from the trench we dug to make the base. Between the rock I added for drainage and the dirt from the trench, I hauled in much less than I expected.

 

[roscoe2000]

Take plenty of pictures in case any issues arise during the build. I did the same thing a about five years ago. I have a good family contractor that I can trust, so I had him to handle design & engineering.

 

[FMC1959]

All great advice above, but the first thing is to call your town hall. Every city, town, municipailty, has their own particualr codes/laws (sometimes without logic) on what you can and cannot do, who is resposible and so on.

The last thing you want to do is put time and money into something and then get a court order that says you can't.

 

[95blklsc]

We have a keystone mortar less wall that varies from 3.5 feet to 7 feet tall for approximately 400 feet. These same stones (half height and straight face) are used for a couple built in stairs as well as flower beds around the house. They aren't cheap but they will last a long time if installed correctly. Ours has been in place for nearly 15 years (since before we bought the house) without any signs of sinking or sagging.

This is the type we have that the wall is made from, although they offer a variety of designs.
http://www.keystonewalls.com/pages/products/Keysystem.html

 

[kbs2244]

The local gov people you want to talk to will be “surface drainage” or some such.
They will have on file the topo maps that will show where the water comes from and where it will go to.
They will be concerned about your impeding any current flow patterns.
If the OK your plans you should be good to go.

This will be just plain, bending over, shovel and crowbar, hard work.
Personally, I would hire it out.
A good landscape contractor will have the tools and the crew.
And he probably already knows who to talk to for any approvals, etc.

 

[Matt The Hammer]

Make sure whatever you build utilizes base drains of some type. Even if you use a wall of old railroad timbers - leave some gaps and backfill with some stone so that the hydrostatic pressure is relieved.

Engineers are dweebs.

 

[DekeT]

Make sure whatever you build utilizes base drains of some type. Even if you use a wall of old railroad timbers - leave some gaps and backfill with some stone so that the hydrostatic pressure is relieved.

Engineers are dweebs.

Matt the Hammer is jealous of engineers.

 

[TommyK]

As has been suggested a keystone block wall is the best bet for a DIY'er. At 4 feet you should not need engineering or tiebacks (grid) but check with your building department. The supplier will provide you with the manufacturer's construction details which will probably require a crushed stone base, a perforated drain pipe behind the wall with crushed stone backfill, and specify how much toe the bottom course requires. Make sure wherever you buy from offers forklift delivery so you can spot the pallets right where you need them. Do the base prep before the delivery.

The laser level for grading is a great suggestion. If the ground slopes along the length of the wall you may need to step the bottom course of block. Obviously you start from the lowest elevation and work toward higher ground.

It is absolutely imperative that the first course of block be level and true to line. Any error in the bottom course will magnify itself in subsequent courses.

I have built many of these in commercial and industrial settings. Several have been over 25 feet in height.

Hope you have a strong back.

 

[Justanoldguy]

Make sure whatever you build utilizes base drains of some type. Even if you use a wall of old railroad timbers - leave some gaps and backfill with some stone so that the hydrostatic pressure is relieved.

Engineers are dweebs.

Nice one on insulting a heap of people on here.

 

[03ranger]

I just finish putting in a “gravity retaining wall” that is 107 feet long and 32 inches high. A total of 16,000 pounds of block, 8 pallets, each block weights approx 50 lbs. I suggest that you run not walk away from places like HD and Loews and check with a material yard on various products. We ended up with Allan Block, some else here suggested Keystone which is another well known quality block product.

The material yards do provide information about the products can, installation procedure, and point you in the right direction concerning build codes. When I ordered the material the material yard suggested buying in pallet quality, to get contractor pricing, which was about 40% off of retail.