Browse Forums General Discussion 1 Jun 08, 2011 9:35 am I have recently put up a new shed with a paved slab, and due to the sloping nature of my yard I had to dig into the slope to have a level slab. This has resulted in a need to put up a small (2 high) sleeper wall around the pavers (and then backfilling). See pics below (please ignore weeds!!) Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ I have been lucky enough to have been given some sleepers and I have a fair idea of how to approach this - just after some advice or confirmation I am on the right track. Essentially I want it butted up level with the pavers to stop them from moving. I need to know is it OK do dig down a little and have the bottom few cm of the sleeper sitting in the dirt, or does it need to be lined with something first? I plan to dig in as much as I need to for a level line and then bed the bottom sleeper. I will then cut some uprights that will be concreted into the ground and bolted to the horizontals . Should I be using stainless or galv bolts here?? Last question is: with the slope of the land would it be better to try and cut the sleepers diagonally to run with the slope on the sides, or just use whole sleeper and backfill across the slope?? If anyone can provide any advice here (or tell me if I am completely off) it would be very much appreciated. Thanks. Re: Small pine sleeper retaining wall - advice for novice 2Jun 08, 2011 11:48 am As long as your slepers area treated to at least H4 rating which they pretty much all are you should be fine to put them straight on or slightly in the ground. In this case you should get a good 20+ years out of it according to timber durrability ratings. If you want to be extra safe you could line with a heavy black plastic. As to your last question it comes down to personal preference. I think sloping the sides would look neater. Hope I've helped. Re: Small pine sleeper retaining wall - advice for novice 3Jun 08, 2011 4:39 pm Personally for a neater look I would concrete in reobar uprights and drill holes into the sleepers and slot them over the reobar in preference to having uprights bolted onto the front. And I would be lining the back of the wall with 200um builders plastic before back filling - will help with longevity of the sleepers not having soil physically against it and stop any fill running out when it rains etc. Re: Small pine sleeper retaining wall - advice for novice 5Jun 09, 2011 8:37 am putting the posts on the fill/retaining side and bolting the sleepers in will make a very weak wall. If there is any reasonable load I would avoid doing it that way. Other wise you'll need to use big plates of steel as washer to spread the load on the bolt head. Re: Small pine sleeper retaining wall - advice for novice 6Jun 14, 2011 2:25 pm Started the build - got the back wall done and happy with that so now to move onto the sides. Was a good experience to get it up there and excited to move onto the sides. The real test will come when I decide to do a wall across the entire back fence for a raised garden bed!! Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Re: Small pine sleeper retaining wall - advice for novice 7Jun 14, 2011 4:17 pm Looks good. Due to your placing of the posts on the other side, it might pay to put two extra posts in. Otherwise a lot of the load goes on the bolt head. How much were your sleepers if you don't mind me asking Re: Small pine sleeper retaining wall - advice for novice 8Jun 14, 2011 4:19 pm deeps Looks good. Due to your placing of the posts on the other side, it might pay to put two extra posts in. Otherwise a lot of the load goes on the bolt head. How much were your sleepers if you don't mind me asking thanks - I was lucky enough to pick up the sleepers off a mate for a steal - a few were slightly warped but the bolts pull them back into line. Versaloc is a mortarless besser block system that still needs a properly engineered footing. If you just do a 400x200 footing it will fail in time. At 17m long you need it… 1 18113 Hi All, I engaged a tradie to install concrete retaining wall 600-800mm high over 32 meters in Victoria. Sleepers are 200*75*2000 mm installed over 17 steel posts. I… 0 6917 Can anyone recommend a good/affordable retaining wall and fence builder that I can get a quote from located in Sydney? 8 45835 |