Choosing The Right Retaining Wall

Are you looking to add a retaining wall to your residential yard or commercial landscaping project? There are many things to consider when deciding on the type of retaining wall you will need. In this article, I will cover the most important things to consider in choosing the right retaining wall. When choosing the right retaining wall, you will need to decide: the height of retaining wall needed, location, soil conditions, type of retaining wall, finding an expert installer, and lastly, your budget.

Height of Retaining Wall

The first and most important decision is deciding how high your retaining wall will need to be. Most people will add a retaining wall here in the Twin Cities Metro, Minnesota, to increase space in their yard or commercial space. Commercial sites use landscape walls to increase parking space or build a building. Some Minnesota residents will build a retaining wall so they can build something in their yard, like a playset or storage shed. No matter what you're trying to achieve, the height of the retaining wall can be one of the most important decisions you'll make. The grade of the yard or space and city regulations are a couple of things to take into consideration when determining the height of the retaining wall.

Grade of the Land

When determining the height of the retaining wall, you need to determine the grade or slope you're trying to lose. If your yard has a steep (high) grade, you might need a higher retaining wall. You have to keep in mind what grade you want after your wall is installed as well. Am I creating a flat area or just trying to decrease my grade? If you are building a retaining wall so you can build a shed in your yard, you will want as little of a slope as possible to build your shed on.

To give you a better understanding of grade, a slope of 100% corresponds to an angle of 45° which would be half of a hill that is straight up and down. When installing a retaining wall, you have to cut out the earth in your yard, which will give you more room. After your retaining wall is installed, you will have a decrease in your grade on the downside of the wall. The more earth you cut out, chances are the higher retaining wall or more retaining walls you will need.

Sometimes a wall can be built, such as on a property line, and earth is brought in from another location to fill behind it. This will enable a structure or parking lot to be built on top of the retaining wall, removing the slope and giving way to a flat surface with very minimal grade.

Our company, Renew Landscaping, is located in a hilly suburb of Inver Grove Heights, which can create steep grades in homeowner's yards and businesses. Renew Landscaping specializes in working with owners looking to install retaining walls to give them more room in their outdoor space.

Regulations

In Minnesota's Twin Cities Metro, some city regulations require the home or business owner to pull a permit. Most of the cities like, Inver Grove Heights and Eagan, MN only require a permit to be pulled in the event the retaining wall is higher than four feet. If a home owner retaining wall is going to be over a foot or too, its best they hire a professional that specializes in retaining walls, such as Renew Landscaping located in Inver Grove Heights, MN.

Some homeowners or commercial properties will have enough room in their yard to have the landscaper install two or more retaining walls. With this scenario, the first retaining wall will be higher and set back a certain distance from the first retaining wall and so forth. This practice requires an expert as most homeowners do not have the experience, knowledge or equipment to handle this type of project.

The second scenario is typically when your landscape wall will be higher than four feet. This will require the landowner to hire an engineer after pulling a city permit. The engineer will design the proper wall height, materials used, drainage needed, and retaining wall material that should be used.

City regulators rely on engineering to come up with the best retaining wall possible. These regulations prevent problems from occurring from an improperly installed retaining wall. A home or business owner should always look to an expert, like Renew Landscaping of the Twin Cities for their next retaining wall project.

Geographical Location of a Retaining Wall

Are you looking to install a retaining wall in the northern states, such as Minnesota, or in a warmer climate that doesn't freeze? Another important decision when choosing the right retaining wall is the amount of annual rainfall. Here in the Twin Cities metro, where Renew Landscaping is located, we get moderate rainfalls and freezing temperatures. This can make the location of where your retaining wall is installed very important.

Freezing Temperatures

As temperatures fall, the moisture in the ground will freeze, causing the earth to expand and contract. When temperatures warm from freezing, the opposite happens. The integrity of your retaining wall is dependent on the ground that holds it. An expert professional landscaper in Minnesota will understand this variable and point you in the right direction when choosing the type of retaining. A landscaping expert like, Renew Landscaping has also perfected it's art of retaining wall installation to combat what freezing temperatures can do to retaining walls.

Amount of Rainfall and Soil Conditions

The amount of rainfall in your geographical area is also important to understand when choosing the right retaining wall. Here in the Twin Cities Metro, such as Minneapolis and St Paul, Minnesota can receive a wide variety of rainfall amounts annually. Having a retaining wall that allows water to pass through it is important. If water is held up behind the retaining wall it may cause it to collapse or bow out in the areas where the waterflow is the highest.

A sandy soil allows water to flow through it easier than a clay or compact soil that will hold water. A soil comprised of clay will hold more water which puts more weight and pressure on your wall over time. The amount of water, weight, and pressure on your wall will have an effect on how long your retaining wall will last overtime. Its important to have proper substrate behind your retaining wall to prevent this so water from rainfall can pass through easier.

Expert retaining wall installers understand the importance the amount of rainfall can have on a retaining wall. Drain tile can be used along with a wall height that follows the background grade to reduce damage caused by heavy rainfalls and water. Proper drainage is essential when choosing your next retaining wall.

Type of Retaining Wall

The most common types of retaining walls used here in the Twin Cities Metro, MN are natural stone, concrete interlocking blocks, and rarely used, wood. Here are nine of the most common retaining walls used here in Minnesota.

1. Gravity Retaining Wall

2. Crib Retaining Wall

3. Gabion Retaining Walls

4. Cantilever Retaining Wall

5. Counter-fort / Buttressed Retaining Wall

6. Anchored Retaining Wall

7. Piled Retaining Wall

8. Mechanically Stabilized Earth (MSE) Retaining wall

9. Hybrid Systems

Gravity Retaining Wall

A Gravity retaining wall depends on its own weight to resist lateral earth pressure. Typically this type of wall is massive. A gravity wall can be constructed out of stone, concrete, or masonry material. Crib retaining walls, Gabions, and Bin retaining walls are also type of gravity retaining walls. Renew Landscaping specializes in natural stone or concrete Gravity Retaining Walls. Click on this link to see what we can do for your next retaining wall project: https://www.renewlandscapingmn.com/retainingwalls

Crib Retaining Wall

A Crib retaining wall is a gravity wall. A Crib wall is constructed of interlocking individual boxes made from timber or pre-cast concrete. The boxes are then filled with aggregate such as crushed stone to allow for water to flow through it easily. This type of wall is not recommended for support of slopes or structures and is more commonly used for areas in need of planters.

Gabion Retaining Walls

Gabion retaining walls are rectangular, wire meshed, boxes, which are filled with rocks or other similar materials. This retaining wall is not typical in a residential or commercial location. Here in the Twin Cities Metro in Minnesota, we usually see Gabion walls installed for erosion control on hillsides or rock cliffs next to roads and highways.

Cantilever Retaining Walls

Cantilever retaining wall is typically made of a stem and base slab. A cantilever retaining wall is typically made of concrete material. This retaining wall is more commonly used than any other type of retaining wall. It is usually used in commercial settings where space is limited. One of the reasons it's used most commonly is that it is economical due to the fact that it uses less concrete than a gravity wall.

Counter-fort / Buttressed Retaining Wall

A counter-fort retaining wall is similar to a Cantilever wall due to it having a toe and heel and usually made of concrete. The only difference is that Counter-fort retaining walls have counter-forts similar to supports that are also concrete-based and are built into the stem angularly to reinforce the stem. A Counter-fort or Buttressed retaining wall can stand a great deal more of weight and is a much stronger wall than a Cantilever.

Anchored Retaining Wall

An Anchored Retaining Wall is used for purposes when space is limited, such as along roadsides. This type of retaining wall can be constructed much higher than most of the other retaining walls that have been mentioned in this blog post. Cables are attached to the wall and then drilled into the earth and filled with concrete on the end to serve as weights to counter the weight distribution. This type of wall is also good for containing rocky and loose soil.

Piled Retaining Wall

Piled Retaining Walls are constructed by driving reinforced concrete piles side by side. The piles are typically driven into the earth at the same depth as the amount of earth it has to support laterally. Piled Retaining Walls are typically limited in their height at 15 feet or less. One benefit to this type of retaining wall is that it does not disturb the soil around it.

Mechanically Stabilized Earth (MSE) Retaining Wall

Mechanically Stabilized Earth Retaining Wall is among the most economical types of retaining walls. MSE walls are supported by granular fills that are held together by reinforcements which can be metal or plastic mesh. Mechanically Stabilized Earth Retaining Walls can be concrete, panel, or even temporary earth retaining walls.

Hybrid Retaining Wall Systems

Hybrid Retaining Walls are usually very heavy using massive anchors embedded into the earth. These retaining walls are sometimes referred to as Composite Retaining Walls. They can me prefab and installed easily on the jobsite.

Who is best at installing Retaining Walls?

You must be careful in selecting a retaining wall installer. Typically landscaping companies such as Renew Landscaping located in Inver Grove Heights, MN is your best place to look.

Landscaping companies must have the right equipment to install a retaining wall. The retaining wall installer must have experience installing similar walls that you are considering. Installing a retaining wall is more than muscle and sweat. The retaining wall expert must be able to calculate many factors in order for your retaining wall stands strong for many years to come.

Budget

Your retaining wall budget probably should have been number one at the top since it ultimately determines how large of retaining wall is and how nice it will look when it's completed. The retaining wall consumer should not cut any corners when it comes to a landscape project such as this. Careful consideration in the retaining wall budget should be made not to cut any corners. When selecting a retaining wall installer such as Renew Landscaping of Minnesota, going with the lower bidder on your project may not be the way to go. If your retaining wall is not done correctly, it could lead to washouts or fallen earth onto a neighbor's property or damage to existing or neighboring property. If a homeowner is unable to afford a high bid on a retaining wall project, it's advised the homeowner waits as long as they can to save up for the right retaining wall installer.

Retaining walls vary in price, and as this article has presented, there are many variables to a retaining wall that can affect the overall cost. Forbes outlines average retaining wall costs in this article https://www.forbes.com/home-improvement/outdoor-living/retaining-wall-cost/#:~:text=On%20average%2C%20building%20a%20retaining,around%20%2450%20per%20square%20foot.

Other factors to consider in your budget is curb appeal and aesthetics. Most homeowners will sell their homes at one point, and a retaining wall can add beauty and value to your home. Retaining wall projects are not cheap, and careful consideration should be made before just hiring any company or the lowest offer you receive. Contact Renew Landscaping of the Twin Cities for a free estimate here https://www.renewlandscapingmn.com/estimates