Retaining wall construction in McAllen TX - a wall that holds the soil back
Yard washing out, a slope creeping toward the patio or an old wall leaning? We build walls planned around their drainage from the start.
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- Retaining wall construction
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- (956) 331-0202
How do you know your yard needs a retaining wall?
An old wall leaning out
If the top of a wall tips toward you or a crack runs along its face, the soil and water behind it are usually pushing harder than the wall was built to take. The lean tends to grow, and when a wall finally gives, it takes the yard and whatever sits on top down with it.
Dirt washing off a slope
After a hard rain you find mud on the patio or the walk and fresh bare spots or roots showing on the bank above it. That slope is moving a little with every storm, so the longer it goes, the more fill and digging a wall will take.
Water sitting at the base
Puddles or soft mud that hang around along the bottom of a wall for days mean water is getting trapped behind it instead of draining away. Trapped water is what pushes walls over, so it's worth a look before the face starts to bow.
What does building a retaining wall in McAllen involve?
Retaining wall construction in McAllen means building a wall that holds back the soil on a slope or a cut in your yard, so the ground above and below it stays usable instead of sliding. A common kind is the segmental wall, manufactured concrete units stacked dry without mortar and usually locked to each other, which holds the soil mostly through its own weight.
We're Cornerstone McAllen Concrete and Masonry, based in McAllen and working the cities around it across the Valley, and most retaining wall calls start the same way, with a bank washing onto the patio, a spot that needs leveling for a drive or a new walkway, or an old wall that's started to lean. The price moves with the wall's length and height, what sits above it, the material you choose and how much digging and drain rock it takes, while the schedule mostly turns on whether the wall needs an engineer's design or a permit before we dig. I'll give you your own figure once I've stood in the yard and seen it.
Details to note before an estimate
- Rough length and height of the wall
- What sits above it, like a slope or drive
- Where water runs or pools now
- Any old wall that's leaning or cracked
How we handle retaining wall construction
A retaining wall lives or dies by what's behind it, so before we talk block or color, I work out where the water will go and how much drain rock the wall needs. I look at the slope, the soil and whatever sits above the wall, and when the lot or that weight calls for it, we bring in an engineer before anyone picks up a shovel. Then my crew and I dig out, pack the base firm so the first course sits dead level, and set the units course by course, filling behind them with drain rock as we go so the gravel ends up right behind the face instead of shoveled in at the end. If a course isn't level, we pull it and reset it, because every course above it inherits the mistake, and once the caps are on we clean up and haul off the dirt you don't need.
Not every tired wall has to come out. If an old brick or stone wall is still standing true and it's mostly the mortar and faces that have worn, I'll tell you so, and masonry restoration may be all it needs. And once a new wall gives you a flat terrace, a lot of folks want something to gather around, which is where fireplace installation comes in.
Work that often goes with a new wall
Masonry restoration
If you've got an older wall that's still sound, restoring its brick, stone and mortar usually costs less than tearing it down and starting over.
Fireplace installation
A new masonry fireplace on the level ground a wall creates turns a slope you couldn't use into a spot to sit out in the evening.
What happens when you call about a retaining wall in McAllen?
Call or send a request
Call (956) 331-0202 or use the form, and tell us roughly how long and tall the wall needs to be. We'll set a time for me to come see the yard.
I walk the yard with you
I come out myself, look at the slope, the soil and where the water runs, and ask a lot of questions about how you want to use the ground. You get your estimate, and I'll tell you then whether the wall will need an engineer or a permit.
Permits and design come first
Anything the wall needs on paper gets lined up before we dig. When an engineer is involved, we wait for the design so the wall gets built the way it was drawn.
We build, clean up, walk through
My crew and I dig, build and backfill the wall, then clean up the site. We walk the finished wall with you so you can look it over and ask anything.
Questions before you build a retaining wall
How much does a retaining wall cost in McAllen?
Around McAllen, a retaining wall usually runs about $15 to $45 per square foot of wall face, which is the part of the wall you see, height times length. Where yours lands depends a lot on the material, since boulders, stone, wood, poured concrete, interlocking block and railroad ties all price differently. How tall the wall is and what it has to hold up move it too, and I'll give you your own number after I've seen the yard.
How do I know if my retaining wall needs soil reinforcement?
One block maker's guide calls for a soil-reinforced wall, with grid layers laid back into the soil behind it, once a plain gravity wall would pass its maximum height, typically four feet. The same guide says shorter walls can need it too when there's a slope or other weight above them, so what sits on top matters as much as how tall the wall is. Tell me what's above the wall when you call, because it changes the design.
What causes a retaining wall to fail?
Water pressure building up behind the wall is one of the main reasons walls fail, which is why drainage belongs in every wall plan. Gravel that drains freely, placed right behind the wall, carries groundwater away and keeps that pressure down. A wall with plain dirt packed tight against its back is a wall that's waiting on a wet season.
How does clay soil in South Texas affect a retaining wall?
Swelling clay pushes harder on a wall as it gets wetter, and that extra stress grows with how much water the clay takes on and how tightly the wall holds it in. Researchers studying retaining walls have tested the high plasticity clays found in South Texas, clays that swell as they soak up water, for exactly this. That's one more reason the drainage behind a wall matters so much here.
Do I need a permit to build a retaining wall in McAllen?
That's a question for the city's Building Permits and Inspections Department, which issues the permits required before anyone builds, expands, modifies, moves or demolishes a building. The city's residential permit checklist asks whether a structure sits in a flood plain, so it helps to look up your lot's flood status first. When a job needs a permit, we take care of the paperwork with the city it's in and set up the inspections.
How do I find out if my retaining wall needs an engineer?
The concrete masonry industry's install guide says a qualified engineer should evaluate the conditions on each site, because the guide covers the general steps and can't see your lot. Under Texas engineering law, an engineer is someone licensed to practice engineering in the state, and that's who we bring in. We're licensed and fully insured ourselves, and I'll tell you at the estimate when I think your wall needs an engineer's eye.
Get a free on-site estimate for your retaining wall
We reply within 1 business day, and I'll come out myself to look at the slope and talk through the wall, free and with no obligation. If you decide to go ahead, we line up any permits and get the work on the calendar. Backed by our satisfaction guarantee.
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Get your retaining wall planned right
Have the wall's rough length and height, what sits above it and your lot's flood status handy, and we can get further on that first visit.