Do It Yourself Retaining Wall
If you have just renovated your home or have moved into a new home then you will no doubt be pleased with the results. There is no better feeling than seeing your ideal home come together as a result of your hard work and effort.
However, if you get your home perfect, you will also want your garden in the best possible condition too, although this may be difficult if you have a sloping garden or one that is easily eroded. There is a solution to this problem if you are willing to do a little more work – the do it yourself retaining wall.
Enhance Your Garden
A do it yourself retaining wall is an extremely effective tool if you want to turn your sloped garden into a workable area. It will hold the soil in place and prevent further erosion so plants, shrubs and flower would be able to thrive, thus completing your ideal home.
Building your own do it yourself retaining wall is not very complicated as long as you can follow simple instructions. Your ideal home and garden could be closer than you think!
How To Build A Do It Yourself Retaining Wall
You can actually erect a do it yourself retaining wall in a couple of days with the right equipment and a little bit of hard work. Simply follow the instructions below and it will be up before you know it.
• Plan exactly where you want your do it yourself retaining wall to lie. There are no hard and fast rules to this but it is usually placed at the top of a garden. When you are satisfied with the planned location, mark it with string or paint so you will know where to begin. You may also want to plan out the wall’s height. A few feet is usually sufficient to achieve the desired effect.
• Measure the elevation on the ground where you plan to place the wall and make sure that your measurements are accurate. You can either ruse a spirit level or a laser to measure this but it is important that you not the elevation for the next step.
• Level off the area where the do it yourself retaining wall will eventually be placed. You can either do this manually with a spade or hire out equipment to cut into the slope and level it off for you. The latter option is much quicker and will save you a lot of time and effort!
• Ensure that your do it yourself wall has a solid foundation by digging a trench of up to 1.5 feet deep, depending on the height of the wall. If in doubt about how deep your trench should be, always dig that little bit deeper because a deep foundation is much better than a shallower one.
• Fill the trench with gravel, leaving about 6-8 inches gap between ground level and the gravel itself. Make sure it is well compacted and solid before moving on to the next step.
• As soon as the gravel is compacted, lay the first stone level of your do it yourself retaining wall. Check constantly that it is level when you are laying it because it will then be much easier to correct that it would later on. Correct any slight differences as you go.
• Make sure that you achieve proper draining of your do it yourself retaining wall because water will settle on it. It may be an idea to install a drainpipe behind the wall to divert water away from the wall and its foundations.
• Continue to build up your do it yourself retaining wall layer by layer and stop at regular intervals to backfill any gaps that appear behind the wall and correct any slight problems and mistakes. The material that you use will obviously affect how many mistakes you make and problems you have so choose wisely. Stone or interlocking blocks are often the best materials to use. When you get to your desired level, add the capstones and your do it yourself retaining wall is ready to go.