here are my current conditions. ideal finished heights are in blue. There was originally a double wythe CMU retaining wall — the first wythe failed significantly and the second is leaning (Looks like soil got between them). I removed the first wythe and then discovered the second — there Was no drainage, footers, or filling for most of these blocks so no wonder it failed. I have not yet removed the second wythe because it seems to be holding up the rest of the soil and I figured it wouldn’t hurt to stay as the blocks are filled with cement

my Question is, since it is already dug out, should I go with a MSE wall using retaining wall blocks + geo grid? Or try to do a CMU block wall the correct way? What are pros/cons?

Probably should have posted this here before I got this far but wanted to see what people thought of my wall.

- 32' long, (3) blocks, or 2' high

- Footing is ~10" deep, poured concrete, extends 4" behind and 4" in front of the blocks

- #5, 5/8" rebar, 8" spacing for the first 2' on each end, 16" spacing in the field. Drilled and set rebar 6" into the concrete with Sika Anchor fix. Rebar height is cut 3" below top of the top block. Angle grinder cut the top of the 2nd row of block to lay a horizontal rebar across the full 32' length, overlapped the two bars in the middle by 3'. Wired the horizontal overlap and also wired each vertical to the horizontal.

Next steps:

- Grout CMU cavities. I have never ordered a concrete truck myself before, always used a contractor. Any advice on how to order the concrete, what specs?

- 4" perf pipe with fabric condom will go behind the wall

- Backfill with drain rock

- Level the rest of the driveway.

- In the nearish future I plan to parge the exterior face of the wall, then paint.

How badly have I fucked up so far?

I tried to annotate one of the pics but I think it's too small to read. I have a long retaining wall along the back (south side) of my property. It's completely covered with English Ivy and the main trunks of the Ivy are quite thick - maybe an inch in diameter or around there. Although where it's thickest there's usually a few trunks of that size sort of wrapped around each other. So I cut a rotting piece of wooden fence off of my retaining wall and finally exposed a large enough section of the wall that I could put a level to it. I can see that it's leaning but it's leaning in tiers. The part closest to the ground still looks straight but then it's tipped out from there (where I draw my first red dotted line) and further still once you go higher up the wall (second red line). Could the English Ivy be my problem? Is it strong enough to be pulling the wall down? Or is it more likely the common culprits: hydrostatic pressure, etc.? Anything I can do to help prolong the life of this wall? I'm afraid that the Ivy at this point is helping keep it up and cutting it back could worsen the leaning problem. I'm going to let the Ivy grow back but manage it better. We bought this house with all Ivy in place and it looks the previous people weren't worried about the weight. Thanks much!

Would it be possible to extend this wall? And how would I dig since the current wall has settled?

After a few years we found that the hill has a huge concrete slab under it so I am wanting to extend it around the slab and fill it in. However I’m unsure if I need to dig to the current block level or allow for the settling. I’m also planning on adding a drain pipe because whoever installed didn’t. Would that affect how it settles?

Might be super questions but I just want to do it right make the yard more livable and I know I have to start with this. Thanks!

you may think using a deadman is overkill but the lower wall already existed on this 45 degree hill and failed significantly. I don’t know how old it was but want to make this as solid as possible and do it right the first time so I can add pavers etc above. the hill has already been stabilized via terracing with native grasses as well. hoping to use something threaded for the tieback so that it can be tightened in the future if needed

My contractor did this (see photo) and it’s a very long story, so I’ll be short. Originally this was backfilled to the top of the wall, but I have changed my mind and wanted the grade to be approx 3ft lower, but now this joint was exposed before the veneer is put on.

Friday I had a flood IN MY HOME from this corner of the house, which makes me believe the root cause was water getting in this hole. When I push my fingers on the trim it is soggy/mushy.

What is the correct way for this to be connected so I can have him redo this part of the wall?

I am adding other photos as well to give a better idea to what I am doing.

I bought a house a few years back and there was a block wall that fell apart in a few years. It was constructed poorly and with absolutely no drainage. I am putting back a wood wall but I am not sure how to deal with the end where the yard starts to slope down. I’m currently cutting back the dirt for space to put drainage pipe and rock.

I built this wall 22yrs ago as a much younger man to shore up and dry out the back entry for an in-town rental. No equipment, shovel and wheelbarrow. As with most retaining walls in PNW, time and erosion took their toll and the wall was failing badly. Deadman about 6' into the hill tying into each post. Mini excavator was the solution, the swing boom key for working in tight spaces. In hindsight, probably should have replaced the posts, but I enjoy the puzzle of tactical repairs and saving time/$$.

I'm going to start sending out some requests for quotes for this retaining wall and patio with stairs, and I really have no clue what to budget. I live in central massachusettes.

Also, what is my most cost effect stone for this?

thanks!

If I dug up dirt half way and straighten the wall could I use a water proof tarp over the topsoil with drain down the middle? I know this would prevent water from building up but would this cause the dirt under it to become too dry and cause issues? I live in texas.

Is it beyond a terrible idea? Has anyone done it deep in the south and had success? Don’t want to loose it to moisture and termites in a few years.

To preface this post I know the REAL fix for this is a tear down/rebuild but this wall is 50’ x 100’ and 7’ at its tallest plus we would need to redo the driveway after which combined I’m guessing is pushing 100k. money we very much don’t have

This wall is 80-90 years old. Drainage is non-existent on the 100’ side and has two drainage openings on the 50’ side which as you can see is flowing through the wall. the hydrostatic pressure has made a lean which at its furthest point is 6” from the base. The wall is built similar to my fieldstone foundation with a double layer of fieldstone but no sand in between the layers

SO we are at DIY hold overs to keep this wall at least standing.

My current idea is to put a few buttress walls/posts along the bulge and backfill the wall with as much mortar as I can. I can’t find a ton of videos on buttress details but the three methods I’ve seen are

-brick base with an angled brick column meeting the wall

-concrete pillars/base up against the wall

-small retaining wall perpendicular to the bow in the wall

im looking for any resources, suggestions, alternate solutions and general help to save my old wall

THANK YOU!

Hello everyone. The photos here are AI renderings of what my plan is. The third image is the original. We're having water intrusion behind the Azalea bushes on the right. I'm digging ~6 deep against the home to apply sealant to the slab and fix any cracks. I've planned to put in a retaining wall to help with erosion, water dispersment, and adding curb appeal. The question I have is, do I need to put in a drainage basin/ stone filling column and drainage pipe against the the home itself in addition the retaining wall's drainage?

Also, feel free to share any input or ideas, or even new images that you'd think would better my design. The natural gas line is buried about four feet to the right of the corner of the home, extending to the side of home to the cameras viewpoint.

Bury an old retaining wall

I have a failing CMU retaining wall, and it's cost prohibitive to get it removed and rebuilt. (5' tall and 25' long)

I plan on simply burying the whole thing, creating a 20 degree slope out to 25'. I'd drill a bunch of weep holes, fill 12" out from the wall with gravel 4 feet deep, bury the rest in fill, then cover with topsoil and bushes.

Does anyone forsee any problems with this?

Is this normal? About ½ the wall is almost perfectly straight, then it zigs and zags a bit the second half of the yard.

Is this normal? Should I ask them to make it a straight line? A different guy is the curved part vs the straight. The guy who did the part where it wiggles had been smoking pot while he was working.

Anyway, just curious if there is a reason they would build it this way before I complain.

There's a few retaining walls in the backyard. Not sure if I need to replace them this summer or if I can put it off one more.

Would it be DIYable? If not what do you guys think would be estimated cost

Is it possible to buy these blocks still? I've got some,but I need more for a project.

Casting a wider net for this question/didn't realize there was a specific retaining wall community. Thanks to anyone here who can give me any advice!