Retaining wall made of 6x8x16 block instead of cinder?
 

I am thinking about building some retaining walls out of cinderblock in my yard. I'll cover them in slate or flagstone when I get the money together. I was looking at cinderblocks and noticed that there are these blocks that are half as wide and half the price. I don't plan on building taller than 4 or 5 blocks high MAX. I also like that these require a smaller footprint. So what do you guys think? Could this work or will my wall topple? Remember it will generally be 3 or 4 blocks high.


http://www.homedepot.com/Building-Materials-Concrete-Cement-Masonry-Concrete-Blocks-Bricks-Lintels/h_d1/N-5yc1vZ1xgyZboge/R-100322580/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

I just finished a small retaining wall with Allan Blocks.
I wasn't very happy with the size/calibration of these and they were a pain to get leveled out.

Good to know. Are you saying these are called Allen blocks?

If your going to backfill them, I'd use ladder wire between each course and fill the cells with mortar, grout, etc. The weight of wet soil can blow out a wall easily depending on it straight length. Your pouring a footer for these as well?

You also might want to try your local block plant to see if they have any seconds or irregulars. They are sold at a substantial discount. They might be grey, but you can paint or stain the wall until you cover it with stone, etc.

Bad idea, even using a rule of thumb 1:4 width to height ratio for a parapet you exceed anything reasonable going that narrow. Retaining walls are notorious for failure, even knee height ones.

There are special interlocking Concrete landscape units designed for your application. I suggest you focus your research in that direction.

One of the main advantages of using concrete landscape wall units is they are typically mortar free and self weeping. Last thing you want is for water or moisture to build up behind a wall like that. The horizontal pressure and change in coefficient of friction in the soil is a double strike. Add rain and strike three.

That is what I have there at the moment. Would using standard cinderblocks prevent failure or are you saying the entire idea is a failure?

Would the ladder wire do anything to help?

cinderblocks = FAIL

And they are not called cinderblocks, they are called Concrete Blocks. Cinderblocks was a term used generations ago for a much weaker product no longer made.

Concrete blocks as retaining wall = Fail

Much engineering (and expense) to make it anything else.

Concrete blocks lack the mass to hold back the earth, and require filling with grout and rebar used with massive footings and must be weeped. Of all structures prone to failure for structural engineers and architects retaining walls top the list. A lot of engineers and architects will not even touch them and leave the liability to the landscape installers using pre-engineered products.

DITTO..

For a roughly 3 foot high wall chances are you will need a PERMIT..which will tell you what size block , how deep and how wide your footing has to be, how much re bar, and that you have to fill all the block cells with concrete. So what you are in a sense building is a wall made of cement.

Building a retaining wall otherwise with CB is a disaster waiting to happen.

On my last house I built 30 ft of 6 ft high, 105 ft of 5 ft high and 240 ft of 3.5 ft high CB retaining wall. If I recall the footing alone required 35 yards of concrete. All of it needed engineering details.. One side of the pool itself acted as a retaining wall. The re bar in the pool was set 4 inches on center, required 55 yards of Gunite and was 18 inches thick. So I know a thing or two about retaining walls, building pools, landscaping and construction.

As far as subing a custom home I could do it but would need quite a bit of help the first coupla times through.

BTW U can call me Maurice as I even know interior design. I was just too fking cheap to higher a decorator. So I learned.

I built this last year
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1281111846.jpg

to this design
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1281111890.jpg

as said already, I recommend to go with an engineered, design to be retaining wall interlocking block

I like block, unless you have big trees with roots, they work great, I had one at my old house. They don't rot, dogs can't dig thhrough it and with the cut block, they can look good..
This guy lives down the street from me, I went by & took some pix for you..
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1281123517.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1281123628.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1281123720.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1281123851.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1281123933.jpg

I'm under the mindset that regardless of the type of wall, the more horizontal pressure behind it, the faster it's going to fail.
Especially true with freeze/thaw areas.

Get a place for that surface water to drain to...before it gets to the wall.

Thanks BYRON!

I am afraid of spending the money and time to build this wall then have the dirt behind it push it over. So how do homes have stone retaining walls?

Byron - that is not a retaining wall is it?

No, that is just a wall to keep his girlfriends from going home.

No, those are just a half size block. Allan Blocks are just for landscaping/retaining walls. There are several manufacturers of this style of block that are available from a local businesses. Good to check around.

Google "retaining wall blocks" and you will find hundreds of pictures