A Wall Story – Part 6

Started backfilling the new walls today, not as simple as it sounds though. The main cause of failure of retaining walls is not the pressure of the soil behind it but the pressure of water not being able to escape. To prevent this we are installing a drain (the yellow tube in the picture) and this has to be covered with 30 – 45 cms of small stones and then a geotextile fabric that stops small bits of earth blocking the holes in the drain tube. Have also added a layer of thick polythene to the back of the wall to reduce damp coming through to the front side. This should give the wall a long life!

Another 2 tons of stones are being delivered tomorrow so we can finish the job.

Even though it will be covered up I did write the year in the top of the wall! This is in a corner reinforced with rebar so should be there for a few years to come. And yes I did stand on the wall to take the picture (giving the wall a stress test at the same time).