I need a masons advice please
 

I have a retaining wall in my yard made of 6x6x8 ties. It is showing it's age (28 yrs) and needs replacing. Repair is not an option. I want to have a block wall installed in its place. I figured the blocks could be installed in front of the ties w/out removing them. But the mason I contacted said the wood must be removed first.

Really? Or is it not necessary? The cost would be huge to have it removed.

Opinions?

oops, you need an operative mason. I'm just speculative.
Jim

I would think building the block wall as close to the existing wall would be great.
When finished, back fill with dirt or gravel or whatever.


Post a picture!


KT

Any allowance for drainage behind the existing wall?
Is it built on a gravel base?
A block (and mortar) wall will not allow moisture to pass through it like the tie wall will.

Depending on the height of the wall, he might want(or be required by code) to install a footer that goes back quite a way under the existing wall.

How tall is it?

You will need to prove you know the secret handshake or I can not share any knowledge with you!!;)

You beat me to it!:cool:

How tall is it? And how long do you want it to last?

If it's more than 3-4' tall, needs to be tied back. And in our area, given the local soils and frost, it should have drainage behind it.

Need a picture and more info. Plus, tell us whether "right in front of" means to you a few inches or a few feet.

JR

I'll post a pic manana. The existing wall has had good drainage...gravel fill and weep holes all song the face. It was built into a hill so over the years the sides had become buried and thats where the wood has begun to rot. It is about 4 feet tall. The block wall can be as close or as far in front as it needs to be ...

If the wall is actually retaining anything it is going to need a footing.that is probably the reason for taking out the old wood ties.

I'm a traveling man....sorry that I cannot help.

I know a guy who is a Free Mason. I'll ask him for free advice.

couldn't a footing be laid in front of the tie wall?

I would think that building a wall of interlocking blocks in front of the timber wall would be ok.. fill between the block with some well draining fill etc..

I've done a number of retaining wall rehabs on a much larger scale..think Thruway, MTA, LIRR etc.. in some places the old wall just cannot be removed for both economic and engineering reasons, or its more economical to use the existing wall to help anchor the new wall..

The 4 foot wall you describe wont be exposed to large forces, unless it is at the toe of a high steep slope (an unlikely placed to build a short wall in the first place),most likely ground retained by it is level or slopes up gradually...small loads

Get estimates from other masons, I can't think of a reason why the existing wall cant stay, besides, the new block wall will only be seeing loads from the fill between it and the existing wall, unless the existing wall is failing (rotating). Or are there zoning issues, setbacks that prevent putting anew wall in front of the old?

Get estimates from other masons ;)

It could, but then you have to pay to have fill delivered behind the wall. That a lot of material.

I can tell you what needs to have happen from the technical side of things, but the answers here very much depend on your local codes. Different cities are going to have widely varying codes based on the local terrain/weather/soils/etc.

In Seattle, because of seismic issues and potential for slides, a 4 foot wall would require a geotechnical survey, and a footer that extended 2-3 feet back into the hillside.

I would think that at some point, your going to have a machine on your property anyway to dig the footing. I don't see how having them rip out the ties and haul them away would cause a huge increase in the price.

Just get estimates, and see what comes up. I usually want my subs to do things in a way that they know will work, even if it isn't the way I would do it.

Permit and engineering just to be safe if its holding up half the mountain side. If not, find out what your local code is for building a garden wall 36" or under and so many feet from a building etc... (that what some people call them here) and over build with a big footer back fill and be done with it. Pic would help a lot on this.

if railroad ties are holding up the soil for that long, then a block wall with a large footer should do the trick.

I had a similar issue at the cottage. I pounded some plate steel down between the soil and ties. Drilled some holes thru the plate steel after removing enough of the wood to expose the plate. Pounded in some "shot rods" about 10 feet into the soil to stabilize. I then rammed in some "screw piles" and the base to serve as a foundation for the new wall. Then I poured a concrete retainer wall. About one foot thick at the top and four feet at the bottom . Outlasted the cottage!!!!! May be overkill for your situation but wasn't very expensive for me as I work in the earth moving/construction business.