Browse Forums Renovation + Home Improvement 1 Mar 12, 2013 1:30 pm I have a house awaiting settlement so I can't exactly back out! Anyway, the house has a paved patio at the back held by a retaining wall at the end as the property slopes downward in the backyard. When I first inspected the property I noticed that the patio wasn't level at the far end and thought I could just fix that myself later on. Many weeks later after doing another inspection I noticed that the retaining wall is bulging out and may actually give in at some point in the future. From the looks of it, the wall wasn't properly designed to hold the patio, which held several outdoor furniture and presumably a lot of people during parties, etc. It seems that the wall was originally built to hold a garden and the previous owners decided to pave it with bricks without upgrading the wall. It is quite possible that it doesn't even have any mortar holding it together all. Long story short I think I will need to rebuild the wall myself but need advice on materials to use. I plan to put a pergola over this patio in the next couple of years so I'll eventually be putting stuff in there that will put a lot of pressure on the wall. What are the general guidelines for building a patio retaining wall for maximum longevity? What sort of bricks and mortar should I use? Also, are there other things I need to look out for when rebuilding retaining walls? Re: Rebuilding retaining wall 2Mar 12, 2013 3:48 pm There is a lot to retaining walls which is why a lot of people get them wrong (http://www.anewhouse.com.au/?p=1585) If the final wall is going to be over 900mm high it should be designed properly and checked by the council. If i was going to be erecting a pergola I would be putting concrete foundations down below the original surface of the ground. 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. Thank you again Simeon.. I will call my certifier for that. Have a good day 4 5108 Thanks for the insights, that makes perfect sense, and yeah, I will be leaning on the experience of the excavator operator entirely. 6 16048 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 6842 |