4-6ft tall retaining wall

[RedWingsDet]

what do I need to do to make sure the wall doesnt fall. The wall is to hold back obvisouly dirt/lawn/patio. They want me to give them a quote for a 700ft patio, and 130ft linear ft retaining wall using versalok or alan block. but sense its 4-6ft tall, what do I need to do to make sure it doesnt fall? concrete footing? obvisouly ill have to use mortar to hold em together, but what else?

ill get pix tomorrow

[Toy2]

I have just used Pavestone, I have used a dry cement mix for the footing and stacked from there..

[mrusk]

By asking those questions, you proved that your not ready for the job.
Matt

[FLD]

you need to re-enforce the fill area, on a no load wall, 2/3 the height of the wall. Most block companys say that no grid is required on walls to 4', but we have found, better safe than sorry. modular block walls work off the same principal as an off-set retaining wall, the same dirt that is trying to push the wall over is also holding the footing down and the wall up. You are going to excuvate the area and the back fill and compact anyway, so be safe and put grid in. Most block companies have design info if you ask.

[RedWingsDet]

Originally Posted by mrusk

By asking those questions, you proved that your not ready for the job.
Matt

well im sorry, highest ive ever done was 3-4ft. I have an idea on how to do this, and am talking with other landscapers around my area about it, but It doesnt hurt to get other oppinions.

[RedWingsDet]

im thinking of using either splitrock 2 or rockwood, the rockwood seems like it'd be better and is much heavier. what I planned on doing was building the wall about 2ft out from the exisiting wall and once I get the new wall up, backfilling it with 21aa and slagsand to help for better drainage rather than fill dirt.

but before putting it in, digging about a 1-2ft trench and filling 1ft with 21aa and then obvisouly level and stack.... oh and using grid, and then rebar and mortar/concrete to hold the blocks to eachother....

hardest part imo is going to be measuring and cutting the caps. I HATE the damn cap stones, they make the tight radi hard as hell to cut.

[FLD]

this is not a good idea. if the old wall fails then your wall fails. 2 ft of grid is not enough to hold up a 6' wall so if the old wall moves then your wall is going to move.

[RedWingsDet]

there is no old wall. they just renovated the house and got the dirt how they wanted and just want a retaining wall to go around it. when i said existing wall, i meant just the dirt...

ill get pix tomorrow and you'll see what I mean

[mbella]

Mark, this is a good opportunity to begin to build a relationship with an engineer. If your wall is four to six feet tall, you should be contacting one.

[kris]

Im not familiar with the block you talking about but Im not getting this .."of course Ill mortar them together?????