Guesstimate on a retaining wall (moved from NC forum) (how much, Home Depot, Lowes)

[yoda_jives]

Can you folks pls advise how long it typically takes to get a 15-feet long and 5feet high retaining wall built for a sloping backyard ? What are talking here 2-3 weeks or 2-3 months ?

[beckycat]

What type of materials do you plan on using?

[yoda_jives]

concrete

[beckycat]

Are you planning on using mortar between the blocks?

[jshallen]

you can do it in a weekend....are you planning on buying the blocks from lowes or home depot? or hiring a company?

[beckycat]

Originally Posted by jshallen

you can do it in a weekend....are you planning on buying the blocks from lowes or home depot? or hiring a company?

That sounds about right. Just make sure you have proper drainage.

[Barking Spider]

When you say concrete, are you talking about poured concrete walls? Concrete block walls mortared together? Or concrete stackable blocks made for retaining walls? Each is totally different.

If you are talking about a poured concrete wall, you should get a pro, both for the design and the construction.

I should also mention that once you exceed 4 feet high, you are usually in another realm of design criteria. Depending on your local jurisdiction, you may be required to pull a permit, or get an engineer to design the wall.

Whichever wall you decide to build, drainage is very important.

The design of the wall is also affected by the height of the slope above the wall. How much earth is this thing going to try to hold up?

If you use stackable blocks, the most important phase is the prep work for the first course. Once that is set, it's really easy.

Other walls require poured concrete footings.

[yoda_jives]

Concrete blocks mortared together is what I was thinking.

Didn't know that home depot can do this ! Sounds good. Don't want to go into the realm of design by making it too high.

Thanks for all the suggestions and will pay attention to the drainage for
sure.

[GaryH3]

Don't forget to check local building codes. Some cities require a permit if the retaining wall is over a certain height. And if there is a walkable area on top of the wall, it may require a railing. We are building in NC and are putting in a series of 32" high retaining walls rather than one taller one. Local code requires a railing if we go over 32" since we will have pathways along the terraces.