Retaining walls almost always enhance a property's value and functionality, whether they're used in residential or commercial settings. On a steep site that wouldn't normally be ideal for development, a number of retaining walls can be used to create level areas where building lots, driveways and parking areas can be located. A retaining wall can improve a home's liveable space and real estate value by creating space for a walkout basement.
Walls vary in proportions, shape and materials useful for construction
Retaining walls come in all shapes and sizes. They may be straight or curved, with exposed faces that are vertical or tilted back into the planet earth. Massive versions are occasionally used to separate divided highways. On the opposite end of the spectrum, shorter walls are simply a foot or two high, tend to be used as landscaping elements, creating garden spaces, sheltered alcoves and visual variety.
Just as they vary in size and shape, they can also differ due to the materials used to create them. Railroad or "landscape" ties enable people to construct these walls from wood. Short walls are often fashioned from native stone. A multitude of modular concrete blocks are available designed for retaining wall construction. These systems typically involve interlocking blocks made to improve the overall strength of the completed wall. Standard CMU (concrete masonry unit) block retaining walls may also be found, often constructed by do-it-yourselfers. Poured concrete retaining walls are built using techniques nearly the same as those used for poured concrete foundation walls.
https://dhallwalling.uk/best-dry-stone-walling-yorskhire/ can compromise value and safety
The value of the walls -functional, aesthetic and property-enhancing-is significantly compromised when it starts to fail. Failure can take several forms. Models made from wood ties begin to fail once the wood deteriorates because of rot. Masonry retaining walls start to fail as cracks develop, as individual blocks shift or fallout of place, or as the wall bows or tilts toward the bottom, threatening to topple.
Retaining wall problems should always be addressed as quickly as possible for two reasons. First of all, once a problem develops, it'll only worsen as time passes, usually becoming more expensive to improve. Secondly, a weakened wall can pose a safety problem, since complete failure of a wall can release a great deal of soil onto people, pets and property.
Foundation repair contractors can also handle retaining wall repairs
Many people don't realize they can call a foundation repair contractor for help repairing retaining walls. They resemble foundation walls, and damage typically occurs as a result of same factors: pressure from expansive or wet soil, improper drainage, soil erosion or settlement, and construction defects. They can also fail because the root systems of trees and shrubs disrupt joints between blocks, landscape ties or stones.
Sometimes a failed retaining wall can only be repaired by dismantling and reconstructing the wall, or at the very least the damaged section. But a skilled foundation repair contractor may be able to avoid this costly work using specialized wall anchors and the same repair techniques that correct bowing, cracking and tilting foundation walls.
The repair involves driving or anchoring strong steel rods or anchors by way of a tilting or cracked fixture and in to the soil behind the wall. Then the contractor uses the anchors or rods along with steel clamping plates and oversized nuts, to exert clamping pressure against the wall, pulling it back into its original position.
It could also be necessary to improve drainage and correct other issues that initially caused the damage. The wall anchor repair technique is an efficient way to fix several problems without resorting to more extensive destruction and reconstruction strategies.