How to Build a Stone Retaining Wall

Introduction

A stone retaining wall is an important structure that you can choose to build in the landscape of your home. Especially if you need to shore up an area. The main function of a stone retaining wall is to hold back the earth, and at the same time, it can serve to improve the overall appearance of your home significantly. The wall can, therefore, be considered an important landscaping element in addition to being a functional structure.

What You Will Need

Before embarking on the task of building a stone retaining wall, it is important to ensure that you have in place everything you are going to need to construct the wall. Some of the tools or equipment that you might need include:

• Rake
• Level
• Tamper
• Shovel
• Tape measure

In addition to your tools, you will also have to take into consideration the materials that you will need. The materials refer to those components that will make up the stone retaining wall. Some of the key materials that you might require are:

• Stone
• Gravel
• Fieldstone
• Cement

Planing the Wall

Making a plan is the first, vital step in building a wall because your plan is what will guide you through the overall implementation of building your wall. When it comes to land preparation, you should first and foremost, create a cross-section drawing of the wall. The cross-section drawing should include both the width of the base and the intended height of the wall.

Preparing Your Base

The first task you will need to undertake is preparing the base of the wall. A stone retaining wall requires a proper base which will ensure that it is anchored in place properly. Mark out the lines that will act as an outline and this is the area where your wall will be built.

During the base preparation process, it is equally important to pick the proper product that will constitute the underlying material that supports the wall. There are several types of materials that you can choose from, and it is up to you to select the material that best suits your needs. Some of the materials include gravel, clay, and regular soil. Each of these materials has different attributes that affect its suitability.

Stone Placement

Placement of the stones must be done with the utmost diligence. It is important to remember to place the bigger stones at the base of the wall and decrease the stone sizes as you go up. This is because the base is responsible for holding the entire structure and the base stones should be big and strong enough to support the weight of the wall. At this point, you will also need to use your level. You can either use a normal level or a string level. The main objective of the level is to ensure that the wall is flat and level in order for it to be stable.

Many of you might not know this, but the main reason why retaining walls collapse is due to an accumulation of water. Water can easily accumulate at the base, and behind your wall, making it unstable and eventually, this will result in the wall collapsing. It is therefore very important to ensure that you protect your wall from collapsing by building it in such as way that it does not trap water on the sides of the wall. Furthermore, water also carries sediment and more often than not, sediment will build up on the sides of your wall. Due to this fact, it is important that you do not leave hollow points on the sides of the wall that will promote sediment buildup. Use the proper materials which will not undermine the overall integrity of your wall.

Aesthetic Appeal of Your Wall

A stone retaining wall is indeed a beautiful feature as well as a functional piece of your landscape.  There are several ways that you can enhance the general aesthetic appeal of your wall.  One of the most popular ways is to build it out of natural stones. Natural stones are visually appealing, and they will help to improve the image of your wall significantly.  They are also a wonderful, sturdy material that will help your wall to last a lifetime.

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