Nearly broke my back compacting the roadbase by hand with a metal mallet. No pain no progress!!
The first course of Terrace blocks are laid. Not too shabby although not entirely professional either. If we thought the worst of it was over now, we had another few courses to go!
Here you can see three courses of Terrace blocks with dirt ready to backfill.
Da-dah!! All four courses laid and not looking too bad. We didn't put down a string line to create a dead straight wall. With all the natural scrub and barely anything angular about it, we decided to see how best we'd go on dead reckoning. We're pleased with how it turned out.
Here is another view of the four course wall, almost completely backfilled to a flat surface. Time to get cracking on the cut side now. I'm exhausted just thinking about it!! To think it was all done by hand too. The only machines employed was ourselves and some trusty hand tools. Not a job for the unfit or undetermined but worthwhile in the end.
Thanks for the pics. We are leaning towards something like this out the back of our place. Our wall will require 3-4 tiers like this. Will be coming back here as reference.
ReplyDeleteIt's hard work but we've also found it strangely enjoyable too. Mostly because we had control over the project and didn't have to rely on contractors.
ReplyDeleteHere's a link to the company we used the products of: http://www.hansonbp.biz/freedom.aspx?sdaID=22&pid=212
We visited the manufacturer in our area, and were able to collect flyers with detailed illustrations and engineering specifications.
Check with Council what their regulations are regarding retaining walls as well. Generally they won't allow a DIY job if there's a large surcharge above the wall, such as your house, and the drop off point is under a certain meterage from the dwelling.
Sounds complicated, but once you know all the details involved, you'll be able to formulate a plan. Engineers can often be avoided if you know the Council regulations and design the wall around them.
Good luck with your retaining walls. We were utter novices in the beginning as well. It's been a wealth of experience getting in and doing it ourselves.