Browse Forums Landscape & Garden Design 1 Jan 24, 2011 11:04 am Our laundry wall acts as a boundary with our neighbour and their garden is built up about above the level of our laundry floor (I'd guess it's about 50cm to 70cm higher). When it rains heavily, water gets into the concrete laundry floor. It's a pain and definitely not good for the structure of the buildilng laundry frame. So we need to build a retaining wall. We plan to use treated pine (eco-pine of course) but just want to know if there is any advice out there on building this. It sounds like an easy DIY job but I just need to know how to plan the job first and so I have a few questions for any helpful people out there: 1. Is timber the best option for something like this? 2. How low should the timber go down below ground level? Should the top of the retaining wall be above the ground level and if so, how much? 3. Do I put any plastic over the treated pine (in front or behind)? 4. How much gap should we leave between the retaining wall and our laundry wall? 5. How do we ensure good drainage behind the retaining wall? Thanks in advance for all the help. Gavin. Re: PUTTING IN A RETAINING WALL 2Jan 24, 2011 5:07 pm The first question is how does your Neighbour feel about you taking his garden to build the wall? The Harder You Try - the Luckier You Get ! Web site http://www.anewhouse.com.au Informative, Amusing, and Opinionated Blog - Over 600 posts on all aspects of building a new house. Re: PUTTING IN A RETAINING WALL 4Jan 25, 2011 10:14 am Suggest finding out what Council Regs need to be adhered to. Some Councils need to be notified about Retaining Walls built right on the boundary between adjoining properties. Materials to be used are a combination of factors eg: Budget, Aesthetic quality, etc. in some cases the Council Regs may govern what materials can and can't be used. Drainage is a must. Ag pipe and drainage gravel etc behind the wall. Most retaining walls that fail do so because of substandard drainage. Got a pic of the subject area? Re: PUTTING IN A RETAINING WALL 6Jan 27, 2011 10:28 am Hi Knockitdown, I've put the photo onto the following link: http://www.dropbox.com/gallery/10806755 ... G?h=10f968 Thanks, Gavin. Re: PUTTING IN A RETAINING WALL 7Jan 27, 2011 12:45 pm You definately need to address that. There is quite a termite risk there with moisture coming through the wall and dirt up against it. I would say any sort of timber in the ground is wrong as it will deteriorate or get eaten in time, but others disagree. 0.7m of earth can retained earth acn create some forces so make sure your wall is strong. Leave a 100mm or more gap between the wall and building and keep it cleaned out regularly. I would use a wonder wall system (google) Re: PUTTING IN A RETAINING WALL 8Jan 27, 2011 3:33 pm Not sure about your location but here's what happens in my council (Maroondah, Victoria) A retaining wall CANNOT be a boundary. It must be 300mm either side. Any retaining wall over 600mm above the natural ground level must be design by a civil engineer. For this you will need a soil survey, feature/contour survey and a re establishment survey as it is on the boundary. If there is a high chance of water entering past the wall (which is the whole point in this case) you must use a combination of plastic sheeting, cement sheeting and bituminous paint. Is that colorbond cladding on the wall? If so does that mean that room was added on after the original house was built? you may be told to pull it down if it was done legally (and I really can't see how it was if it was added after DIY, Home Maintenance & Repair Are you doing this with a building permit? Conversion of a non habitable room into a habitable room requires building permit. 3 13421 Thank you again Simeon.. I will call my certifier for that. Have a good day 4 1333 Thanks for the insights, that makes perfect sense, and yeah, I will be leaning on the experience of the excavator operator entirely. 6 11076 |