I was going to do some retaining wall work but then the guy I was going to work for started doing the whole "we're the toughest of the tough and the best of the best" type bullshit and I left. I like to let my work do the talking. I'm not here to pad anyone's ego
Never has my dad hired for anyone for more than the labor… I helped him build one of these walls on his property. Every day I find something new that I respect him even more for. All the substance of the things we did that I never knew about… it amazes me all the things he can do. I’m sure I’ll still find more memories to look back on in a new light. I have no idea how he learned to do just… absolutely everything.
Cheap labor from south of the border plays a huge role in the quality of a retaining wall as well. They'll throw up as quick as they can without any concern for longevity. "Procedures, technique, watz dat?"
Been building retaining walls for a long time. Family business starting in 1960. Masonry business. Yes there are a lot of contractors taking shortcuts but when you get legit quotes for 12-15k. Then decide to hire the cheapest bid at half the price. Cmon. Whose fault is that. Don't blame the company / person or persons who did the work. Blame yourself. You get what you pay for. Quality work costs money. Cheap is cheap
Not rocket science when done correct and climate zones dictate construction, 40% of the country never see prolonged deep freezes and have sturdier draining soils
Theres a million ways to do it. You do not need a civil engineer in most cases to build one of these, so dont pay for overkill like this. Dont go too cheap either but you can build a good retaining wall in a number of ways. I have seen railraod ties last many decades. If you put enough stone or brick or rock, and it will last.
For anyone who doesnt know. Do not use recycled concrete with the grid mesh. It eats it away resulting in your wall to fail. Its cheaper but more expensive in the end.
Wouldn't ir be better to build a retaining wall from impermeable concrete without all that gravel to drain the moisture? Fewer resources and simpler to make…
Earth will always win. The best retaining wall is plant life and all their roots and dirt draining….like just a normal hill.
Or maybe a little garden?
Unless you have stone bedrock everywhere clay and dirt is always going to push your dinky human wall around, its hard enough to build ON TOP of the earth.
But this guy is doing about as good a job as you could possibly ever do. May even outlast the cheap drywall and plastic mansion behind it..
Lol, in terms of a structure, it's not that complex. Get over yourself. That's too funny. Is it commonly overlooked and built wrong. Highly complex, no. Pretty simple. It takes 9 nine math to understand.
I didnt do any of that I'm poor and dumb I have railroad ties stacked vertically with post sunken two feet down with concrete and backfilled with dirt, and no gravel hopefully I move out before those walls give way because 80 percent are made from scrap lumber.
I have fixed 20 or so retaining walls in 3 states, nobody ever builds them well, and it sucks. Fixing that shit in situ is a pain in the ass like no other, except major plumbing issues.
There not a little complicated especially if u do them correctly sad part is theres alot of stupid contractors out there that cut every corner possible… preps most important or they will fail.. these guys do it right.. but after the prep its just stacking stones any block layer would love to do these versus 88lb blocks going 40 ft high working on scaffolding and hqving to mortar all blocks..
I'm always amazed, regardless of the topic, every single commenter is a self-proclaimed expert on that topic. Here, we currently have a total of 799 comments so far, and EVERYONE of you are experts
46 Comments
I was going to do some retaining wall work but then the guy I was going to work for started doing the whole "we're the toughest of the tough and the best of the best" type bullshit and I left. I like to let my work do the talking. I'm not here to pad anyone's ego
My grandma built larger walls by herself with cheap cinderblocks, and it's lasted twenty years without any issues…
The geo grid is the most important part. You could backfill that will almost any material and level of compaction, and it'll hold the wall straight.
Never has my dad hired for anyone for more than the labor… I helped him build one of these walls on his property. Every day I find something new that I respect him even more for. All the substance of the things we did that I never knew about… it amazes me all the things he can do. I’m sure I’ll still find more memories to look back on in a new light. I have no idea how he learned to do just… absolutely everything.
Cheap labor from south of the border plays a huge role in the quality of a retaining wall as well. They'll throw up as quick as they can without any concern for longevity. "Procedures, technique, watz dat?"
Been building retaining walls for a long time. Family business starting in 1960. Masonry business. Yes there are a lot of contractors taking shortcuts but when you get legit quotes for 12-15k. Then decide to hire the cheapest bid at half the price. Cmon. Whose fault is that. Don't blame the company / person or persons who did the work. Blame yourself. You get what you pay for. Quality work costs money. Cheap is cheap
Is the mesh rolled out work every course of stone?
Retaining walls are actually very simplistic and can be taught by someone in five minutes that knows what they're talking about.
They look nice but don't last in a cold climate. Pour concrete. If you want pretty. Put blocks in front of concrete
Not rocket science when done correct and climate zones dictate construction, 40% of the country never see prolonged deep freezes and have sturdier draining soils
Grow up.
What's with the dumb fuck amount of jump cuts are each syllable..? "Don't recommend this channel"
You’re not filling it with concrete to make a funny video when the wall falls over?😂😂
It’s not very very complex…
Retaining walls are engineering structures and it's not something that should be built by any Tom , Dick and Harry.
It all made sense until you said stupid stuff about the geo grid
How much for that exact same one?
Theres a million ways to do it. You do not need a civil engineer in most cases to build one of these, so dont pay for overkill like this. Dont go too cheap either but you can build a good retaining wall in a number of ways. I have seen railraod ties last many decades. If you put enough stone or brick or rock, and it will last.
I avoid this situation by never buying a house with a steep grade in the back yard. Problem solved.
Its nice to see stuff done correctly
Great job!
Most Folks dont know how, Or? Refuse to put in the BuXx, or All the REQUIRED Labor$! !
Looks like you're over bidding on extra materials. You don't need 4-5 feet of 57 behind that wall.
Holy fuckin houses.
It's usually because of poor footings period
I use river gravel. It's better for draining limestone is angular and it naturally compacts and locks together. Limestone base river gravel back fill
Complex? Ya… try again
For anyone who doesnt know. Do not use recycled concrete with the grid mesh. It eats it away resulting in your wall to fail. Its cheaper but more expensive in the end.
And most landscaping company’s won’t do it this way. They will excavate 3 feet back and call it good with 1ft of drainage rock behind it lol
I prefer the triangular geogrid.
Wouldn't ir be better to build a retaining wall from impermeable concrete without all that gravel to drain the moisture? Fewer resources and simpler to make…
Earth will always win.
The best retaining wall is plant life and all their roots and dirt draining….like just a normal hill.
Or maybe a little garden?
Unless you have stone bedrock everywhere clay and dirt is always going to push your dinky human wall around, its hard enough to build ON TOP of the earth.
But this guy is doing about as good a job as you could possibly ever do. May even outlast the cheap drywall and plastic mansion behind it..
Lol, in terms of a structure, it's not that complex. Get over yourself. That's too funny. Is it commonly overlooked and built wrong. Highly complex, no. Pretty simple. It takes 9 nine math to understand.
Excessively well built😊
No deadmen?
The biggest mistake i see landscape companies make when building these.
Is trying to cheap out on it.
I always buried 2 layers of block under the original ground level. Plus 6 inchesnfor rock.
They wont put any. And no geo grid. With a half assed drain.
Within 24 months. Its being pushed out.
I didnt do any of that I'm poor and dumb I have railroad ties stacked vertically with post sunken two feet down with concrete and backfilled with dirt, and no gravel hopefully I move out before those walls give way because 80 percent are made from scrap lumber.
I have fixed 20 or so retaining walls in 3 states, nobody ever builds them well, and it sucks. Fixing that shit in situ is a pain in the ass like no other, except major plumbing issues.
That wall costs more than the house, what happened to bricks concrete and rebar?
If DRock from Pagel Services knew anything about retaining walls. 😂
And yet you're using shit block, without Pins.
There not a little complicated especially if u do them correctly sad part is theres alot of stupid contractors out there that cut every corner possible… preps most important or they will fail.. these guys do it right.. but after the prep its just stacking stones any block layer would love to do these versus 88lb blocks going 40 ft high working on scaffolding and hqving to mortar all blocks..
Retaining walls are not that complex at all.
They are very easy to build correctly. The issue is a lot of people take shortcuts.
its not just the freezing and thawing, its the sheer weight of water. Poor drainage will also weaken the foundation.
Top Shelf Quality Engineering, then construction. Pro's!!
Keystone manual is only calling for a foot of gravel behind the wall. Why so much?
I'm always amazed, regardless of the topic, every single commenter is a self-proclaimed expert on that topic. Here, we currently have a total of 799 comments so far, and EVERYONE of you are experts