Choosing the right retaining wall

Unless you live in a completely flat area, you're likely going to need to put in a retaining wall at some point on your property. Of course, you may also be roped in to helping out someone else with one of these projects. In these cases, it helps to know what the best types of retaining wall actually are.

There's quite a lot of choice when looking for the right wall, including gravity walls and anchored retaining walls. Let's take a look at the pros and cons of the most popular options.

1) Gravity walls

Common on smaller properties, gravity walls are usually quite short, and depend on weight to withstand the materials behind. As they're so small, you can usually tackle the installation over the weekend without needing to hire a digger (although you may still want to).

Pro: The easiest retaining wall to construct, and you usually won't find they take a great deal of time to finish.

Con: Have to be quite short, and the weight of the material behind over time can lead to bulging.

2) Cantilevered walls

This is a type of wall that's likely to require some more serious equipment during installation, but the payoff is worth it. These are single-layer walls connected to a base slab. This makes them perfect for large loads and tall slopes.

Pro: Can support tall slopes, and retain a lot of material. They also have a uniform thickness.

Con: Quite complex, and construction will often be beyond the realm of a weekend project.

3) Anchored earth walls

As the name implies, anchored earth walls use cables or another material to anchor into the earth or rock being held back. They're useful when the wall needs to be slender, for example in a backyard that's short on space.

Pro: Can use a slender wall, ideal for small backyards.

Con: Technically complex, and may take more than a weekend to complete.

Retaining walls are found all over the world - and there's a reason why. There's nothing better for holding back earth or other material, and they can add a lot to a backyard.

If you're getting landscaping ideas and want to get out into the back garden, a retaining wall is a great project to start off with. Speak to Kennards Hire if you'd like access to the tools to make the job easier.