New & Replacement Walls That Last
When building a new or replacing a retaining wall the objective is to have it look as crisp, clean and straight as the day it was built. This wall was to replace one at Bonnells Bay NSW. Fully licensed and insured Lake2Country Pty Ltd build decorative, stable and long lasting retaining walls anywhere on the Western side of Lake Macquarie including Wyee, Morisset, Balcolyn, Bonnells Bay, Wangi Wangi, Buttaba, Arcadia Vale, Balmoral, Killaben Bay, Toronto and Warners Bay NSW.
In some instances it’s necessary to use our architectural design software to show the client exactly what is to be done or to present the design to structural engineers.
Firstly a substantial footing should be excavated and concrete poured with starter bars, depending on the size of the project we will recommend a structural engineer in the Lower Hunter, Toronto NSW or Newcastle Districts.
We at Lake2Country Pty Ltd do not agree with the Landscapers idea of building a sandstone block retaining wall on a footing of compacted gravel or soil when it does in fact serve a structural load bearing purpose.
Although we concrete the first course of blocks onto starter bars to the foundation we ensure we allow for adequate drainage whilst guaranteeing the stability of the retaining wall. The footing is keyed back into the ground to be retained.
The second most important step is laying the blocks to be stable, uniform and decorative from bottom to top. Finishing the ends, building aesthetic curves and core-filling with clean gravel all makes for a tradesman like finished job.
Part of the engineering of any retaining wall is in the design of the back-fill which should include drainage pipes (ag-drain), weed-mat, clean washed gravel, topped with suitable topping soil and turf laid where required. A reasonable amount of staining and moss is acceptable but bleed through of backing soil is not.
At all times the site should be kept clean and tidy, safety is always a priority, especially if laying large 200 kg sandstone blocks using machinery. The greatest satisfaction for the principles and staff of Lake2Country is to walk away from a finished retaining wall job knowing that it has been designed and built exactly how the client requested and to last looking how we built it for many years to come.
Please take the time to watch the slide show below to see an example of how Lake2Country Pty Ltd carry out a task as described above.