I've just watched about 15 different videos of how to install concrete sleeper retaining walls. This is by far the best , most concise and informative video yet. Thank you.
Those Americans asking, the closest steel post size you have is a W4x13 Wide Flange W-Beam. Australia (where this is) uses steel sections much closer to British sizes than US sizes. As for the concrete sleepers, my understanding is they are specifically made to fit within the flanges of the steel beam (custom size), and would need a concrete yard in the US making them (which I'm not sure any are doing). The issue with some of these is that there is no cover on the end of the steel reinforcement bars which can lead to corrosion (they are generally made in long sections with long lengths of reinforcing bar and then cut to standard lengths which exposes the reinforcement at the cuts). My hope is they may change over to using Basalt Fibre Reinforcement instead to solve this problem.
I have carted and used concrete retaining wall sleepers over a 13 year period. In that time, the largest sleepers that were taken out of the factory were the "Limestone Rockface" design, based on Mt. Gambier stone, 2.4 metres long, 200 mm high and 150 mm thick. These sleepers were being used in a 3.2 metre high retaining wall, and the wall was reinforced with two sections of channel welded onto the uprights at 1/3 and 2/3 height of the retaining wall, and these horizontal beams were 2 metres long. They were buried into the ground, and compacted into place to give further reinforcing to the base of the wall. Secondary reinforcing was run the other way and backfilled away from the wall, behind the sleepers at varying heights.. Cement was 40 MPA, and 3 by N16 rods were used in each sleeper. Sleeper sizes can vary from 1.8 metres; 80 and 100 mm thick. 2 metres; 80, 100 and 120 thick. 2.4 metres; 100, 120 and 150 thick. 2.5 metres; 100, 120 and 150 thick. All of the above were on a 200 mm height. Though, in saying that for the height, sleepers of 240 and 250 mm height have also been seen. The worst 'failures' that have been seen by myself was a 2 metre high retaining wall that was backfilled with clay. Popped all the sleepers, and the whole wall needed to be replaced! Similar results were obtained by compacting right up to the wall. Minimum of 1 metre distance needs to be kept from the wall if you are using a wacker or a roller. Another wall that failed was installed in the 1990's, it had to be replaced after 2010 due to cracking and fading of the sleepers. That wall was a timber pattern applied to the top of the sleeper in the mould, done with a brown topping coat. You also need to be careful as to the beams that are used in the wall. Some contractors will use 80 mm posts, which are not up to standard. One contractor was caught doing the wrong thing, so had to pull all the posts out, and start again. Another shaved all of the sleepers to fit the steel. Not professional!!!
Thank you. Very helpful. What diameter do the holes need to be bored for the steel posts if the finished wall is under 1m tall? The diameter quoted in the video seems a lot.
@@DavesShed: Suspect that you need to work on a 2 times multiplier with the hole that you need to put down., So, if you are using a 100 mm steel, you need to go 2 times the thickness of the biggest dimension on the width and height of the steel. Not the length... So, if the largest dimension is 100 mm, you would go 200 mm either side of the steel, plus the dimension of the steel you are working off, so a 500 mm hole would need to be drilled to a minimum of equal the height of the wall, plus 10%. Steel should never rest on the bottom of the hole! So, for a 1 metre high wall, you would go down 1 metre, plus 10% of 1 metre, which is 100 mm. The reason why so big? If your retaining wall , at 1 metre high, has a solid fence put on top, which does often happen, you need to ensure that the wind will not blow the wall over! Do not laugh, as this has been seen to happen! Much to the disgust of the client, and the embarrasment / oops! of the contractor!
@@111jacare The length (depth) is clear for me. What is unclear is the diameter of the hole. The way I was taught to determine the depth was 1:1+ 100mm for retaining wall height PLUS 1:0.5 for fence. So a 800mm wall plus 1200mm fence would be 800 + 600 + 100 = 1500mm deep hole. but what I'm unclear about is the dimeter of that hole because in the past I've always done wooden posts. With the steel H posts, I think they are 100mm wide? I am hoping that a 200mm auger will be enough.
First time i saw this setup was last year in QLD, i was impressed. Im lookiing at doing the same to a friends property in Thailand. Size is 24 MTRs x MTR high. Can you please tell me How thick is the galvanized steel, and how thick are the concrete sleepers. Also do you need to put a rust inhibitor onto the gal to prevent it from rusting. Thank you.
At the start of construction of the Victoria Line Tube in London UK. we built yards of this type of sleeper walling. Some was for sand/aggregate bins for the concrete batching plants. Other's were for the tunnels excavated spoil, where loading shovels could load muck away trucks with out chasing the clay around the yard. Sleepers were cheap and if we supplied our own trucks, we'd get them for free. It was a great way to recycle them. It's more difficult now with old sleepers and telegraph poles as they were pressure coated in creosote which is a big no, no now. Friends restoring a tug used in WWII needed a mast and approached the telephone company for a used one. Because of the creosote regulars they could not supply one. Instead the company donated a new one delivered it and lifted it in place with their crane truck.
i dont use fabrics on in the vertical a 3/4"gravel 100mm deep will hold all the silt back you want the wall to drain through the front as well as a the base
thank you for the handy video. how high do you fill behind the wall with drainage aggregate? does it need to be all the way from the agi drain to the top of the wall?
Depends on height but I leave about 200mm from the top with the last 1m high wall I did. I fill the gap at the top with top soil. As long as there is sufficient room for the water to drain down.
I like this concept because it fits my needs for space, ease, & longevity for the project I have planned. The US eq H beam galvanized is about $50/ft at this time. My personal project requires 43 beams varying in length above grade from 18" to 40". My frost line is 36"... so I am looking over 10k usd just for posts. Still have to source several hundred sqft of sleeper. Not realistic at all for me. So, I am thinking if I go this route, I would diy concrete posts to accept diy sleepers. What spec/standard would a concrete post need to be made to? I was thinking 6"deepX8"wide with channels 2in deep by 3in wide, that would accept panels having a 2x3in tab but be 4" thick to sit flush with the front of the post. The below grade portion of the beam would be full dimension & sit on a concrete footer that is surrounded by gravel. Using UHPC (10k+ psi & 1500+psi for both tensile & flexural) & perhaps inert rebar (basalt) to build both the posts & panels. I am not a concrete guy or a structural engineer. I do work in precision manufacturing & can read & follow directions. Anyone with experience or thoughts on something like this? This video, being 2 years old at this time, may not see a lot of traffic... I will be cutting & pasting this question in other videos.
and for your sleepers - you could use this approach (diy garden bed boxes) with some more substantial rebar in it - cost of materials is about $22 per sleeper from HD (7" tall x 2" deep x 60" long) if you use teh method he shows in Part 4 of the series - ua-cam.com/play/PLZIMIDEiQu3IwuRHd8teRV0VFOT5ldHK2.html - I'm looking at buildinga 48' long wall 36" tall using the sutter posts and diy sleepers - good luck!
@@AussieInSeattle Thanks for the reply. I watched his series & a couple of the vids multiple times. I settled on making a melamine form that makes 4 at a time & sleepers are 60"x 8x 4. 2pcs rebar. Mix is 2 bags "regular" 2L cement 2L CSA flow enhancer & 2oz basalt fiber. I keep them wet while they dry & they can be demolded in about 6 hours (but I usually do just batch per day). I did a test batch last fall & let them sit out all winter (lots of hot/cold cycles). No visible damage. I cantilevered one & stacked 10 sacks on the end.. no visible bending/cracking. I found a local importer of "super posts" & am driving those every 30" on a slight inward angle (about 10deg). The sleepers will simply rest against them. They have holes in them... so I may bolt a steel cable near the tops of them & anchor the other end 5-10ft back into the gravel base I back fill with.
Hey mate, thanks for sharing! I have a question regarding the drainage. Do you need to have the ag pipe running along the retaining wall if you have weep holes along the wall? This is in clay type soil. The wall is 800mm at its highest sloping down to 200mm over 7 metres. Cheers.
I thought putting landscaping fabric vertically behind the retainer will cause the soil to harden over time with the water and can cause the ground to swell against the wall. Maybe where you guys are, this isn't a problem.
He added pipe directly behind it then filled it with gravel. Then you add a couple inches topsoil for the foot or so behind the gravel fill. That’s how it should be done and how I believe he was saying but just didn’t show it.
Unit doesn't matter, whichever you use you'll get the same result. If your batter is say 1 to 6 (common for dry stone retaining walls), it simply means for every 6 units up there's 1 unit lean back. For every 6 cm/feet/meters/inches/millimeters/whatever, you lean back 1 of the same unit. The bigger number is height, the smaller number is lean back. So, for the examples in the video 1:16 or 1:10 means, for every 16 or 10 units you go up, you go 1 unit back. Be it inch, feet, centimeter, millimeter, ... it's all the same. As long as you use the same unit for both numbers.
Nowhere as far as I can tell. I've been looking too. I haven't seen the I-Beams or H posts, as they call them, either. I believe they are similar, if not the same, as a galvanized guardrail post. There are a few sites that sell reclaimed guardrails and posts which would likely work for a short retaining wall but it wouldn't be nearly as attractive in my opinion. I'd love to hear if there is a source here in the USA for the concrete sleepers and/or H posts if anyone knows of one.
@@Machinati It's a system commonly used in Australia and New Zealand, in the US landscapers tend to use the stacked block walls you see everywhere there. In my country Netherlands retaining walls are usually made from stacked concrete elements, stone filled mesh baskets or masonry walls, but I liked the Australian system for its looks and ease of construction because of the relatively low weight of the materials, and the amount of earth that needs to be moved is less than with other construction methods as no full length concrete foundation is needed, just the holes for the posts. So I looked for steel H column in a standard 100mm size (4 inches) and ordered these galvanised from a steel merchant in the desired lengths. The infill I use are thick hardwood timber, as it does look very nice and is easier to handle when building the wall on your own, the hardwood is 50mmx150mm in size (2x6 in US sizes) and length is kept to 1m ( 3'4") between posts to be strong enough against the pressure of the soil. Beneath the surface I use concrete pavement edging slabs 6" deep to prevent any aggregate from slipping underneath the wall to the low side, the slabs are the same length as the timbers. You should be able to get these materials separately in the US from a steel merchant and timber yard, the use of real railroad ties between posts is an option too, but the H-column must be of an appropriate size for the ties to fit in, a 6"x6" or 8"x8" H column may be needed for that. Bear in mind that the space inside the flanges of the H is less than the column size, for my 4"x4" H column this is about 3" between the flanges, the remaining space when sliding the 2" thick timber in is filled wit 1" battens screwed to the inside
@@Machinati I-beams are sometimes called universal beams or RSJs here in Australia too. Maybe ask a steel supplier in the states about them and see what they've got?
G'day Jason. Great vid!! Got a rookie question.. In terms of a 1:10 or 1:16 fall back towards the side you're retaining, using a spirit level against the steel how far would the bubble be into one side of the lines on the level? Halfway on 1 side of the line, just touching the line, 1/4 over the line?
UC = Universal column I'd be inclined to build a retaining wall leaning slightly into the soil behind. If it's vertical and starts to topple, you are goosed, it will progressively get worse. I'd build it leaning in. (But I'm no expert)
Hi, I need help... we want to build this wall but when we dig hole, it's hard for us to drill.... we think its stone.. at least it's very hard... can someone assist us with suggestions please? The soil is compressed shale
This system isn’t suitable for all soil types. One of its only disadvantages is the need to be able to dig down as deep. A block wall could be a more suitable option for you because the footing it sits on will be shallower but it will need to be wider on the contrary. Each system has its pros and cons. It is definitely not a “one size fits all” situation, food for thought any ways… good luck 👍🏻
@@niknik3520 it depends on how many holes you can get as close to depth as possible. Also will the wall be under high levels of pressure structurally,, or is it's purpose more cosmetic? After initial excavation in shale it's unlikely ground will shift forward. So if you cannot get all holes to full depth you may consider reducing space between posts for extra strength. You'd have to get all holes no less than 75% off required depth.
I would like to clarify - retaining walls built incorrectly with concrete, steel, wood or plastic will fail- period! Retaining walls built correctly will last - period! We have all seen wooden retaining walls last for decades. There are some railroad bridges over 100 years old- There is a retaining wall in Rockport Texas that cars drive by daily that was built in 1943. Here's what to keep in mind- if you build it out of concrete you release over 20lbs of Co2 per cubic foot used- If you build it our of steel you release over 30lbs of Co2 per cubic foot used- if you build it out of wood you sequester over 17lbs of Co2 per cubic foot used. If you build it right regardless of what you use, it will last past 60 years, you will save money and, if you use wood, you are using a renewable resource. But, if you do not know how to build with wood, stick with what you know!
It is okay to use timber... until the white ants / termites attack! I have seen wandoo sleepers, with a density rating of 1500, eaten hollow by white ants. Jarrah sleepers fare worse, as their density rating is only 800. Pine? Don't even go there!!!
@@Xalta_Sailor You're right! It's not the CO2 that's the problem. Without CO2 the world would be freezing and dead because CO2 traps the sun's warmth vital for life. But, the benefits of CO2 are constrained by water and heat. As you pass 40 degress celcius, the proteins in plants denature (cook), and photosynthesis starts to slow and eventually stop (leading to plant death). High CO2 without water is highly problematic! The reason CO2 emissions matter in the atmosphere is as it goes up it results in too much trapped heat. This leads to big changes to the hydrological cycle (more extreme rain, and less rain in between) and increases the frequency of extreme heat. Bottom line: emissions matter!
I've just watched about 15 different videos of how to install concrete sleeper retaining walls. This is by far the best , most concise and informative video yet. Thank you.
Those Americans asking, the closest steel post size you have is a W4x13 Wide Flange W-Beam. Australia (where this is) uses steel sections much closer to British sizes than US sizes. As for the concrete sleepers, my understanding is they are specifically made to fit within the flanges of the steel beam (custom size), and would need a concrete yard in the US making them (which I'm not sure any are doing). The issue with some of these is that there is no cover on the end of the steel reinforcement bars which can lead to corrosion (they are generally made in long sections with long lengths of reinforcing bar and then cut to standard lengths which exposes the reinforcement at the cuts). My hope is they may change over to using Basalt Fibre Reinforcement instead to solve this problem.
No corrosion mate reinforced steel is encompassed by the concrete the posts are installed at the sleeper length no cutting
Top of the post?
I have carted and used concrete retaining wall sleepers over a 13 year period. In that time, the largest sleepers that were taken out of the factory were the "Limestone Rockface" design, based on Mt. Gambier stone, 2.4 metres long, 200 mm high and 150 mm thick. These sleepers were being used in a 3.2 metre high retaining wall, and the wall was reinforced with two sections of channel welded onto the uprights at 1/3 and 2/3 height of the retaining wall, and these horizontal beams were 2 metres long. They were buried into the ground, and compacted into place to give further reinforcing to the base of the wall. Secondary reinforcing was run the other way and backfilled away from the wall, behind the sleepers at varying heights.. Cement was 40 MPA, and 3 by N16 rods were used in each sleeper.
Sleeper sizes can vary from 1.8 metres; 80 and 100 mm thick. 2 metres; 80, 100 and 120 thick. 2.4 metres; 100, 120 and 150 thick. 2.5 metres; 100, 120 and 150 thick. All of the above were on a 200 mm height. Though, in saying that for the height, sleepers of 240 and 250 mm height have also been seen.
The worst 'failures' that have been seen by myself was a 2 metre high retaining wall that was backfilled with clay. Popped all the sleepers, and the whole wall needed to be replaced! Similar results were obtained by compacting right up to the wall. Minimum of 1 metre distance needs to be kept from the wall if you are using a wacker or a roller. Another wall that failed was installed in the 1990's, it had to be replaced after 2010 due to cracking and fading of the sleepers. That wall was a timber pattern applied to the top of the sleeper in the mould, done with a brown topping coat.
You also need to be careful as to the beams that are used in the wall. Some contractors will use 80 mm posts, which are not up to standard. One contractor was caught doing the wrong thing, so had to pull all the posts out, and start again. Another shaved all of the sleepers to fit the steel. Not professional!!!
Thank you. Very helpful. What diameter do the holes need to be bored for the steel posts if the finished wall is under 1m tall? The diameter quoted in the video seems a lot.
@@DavesShed: Suspect that you need to work on a 2 times multiplier with the hole that you need to put down., So, if you are using a 100 mm steel, you need to go 2 times the thickness of the biggest dimension on the width and height of the steel. Not the length... So, if the largest dimension is 100 mm, you would go 200 mm either side of the steel, plus the dimension of the steel you are working off, so a 500 mm hole would need to be drilled to a minimum of equal the height of the wall, plus 10%. Steel should never rest on the bottom of the hole! So, for a 1 metre high wall, you would go down 1 metre, plus 10% of 1 metre, which is 100 mm.
The reason why so big? If your retaining wall , at 1 metre high, has a solid fence put on top, which does often happen, you need to ensure that the wind will not blow the wall over! Do not laugh, as this has been seen to happen! Much to the disgust of the client, and the embarrasment / oops! of the contractor!
@@111jacare The length (depth) is clear for me. What is unclear is the diameter of the hole.
The way I was taught to determine the depth was 1:1+ 100mm for retaining wall height PLUS 1:0.5 for fence. So a 800mm wall plus 1200mm fence would be 800 + 600 + 100 = 1500mm deep hole.
but what I'm unclear about is the dimeter of that hole because in the past I've always done wooden posts. With the steel H posts, I think they are 100mm wide? I am hoping that a 200mm auger will be enough.
That's a nice retaining wall, thanks.
That's pretty dope! Very cool idea 🙌⚒
First time i saw this setup was last year in QLD, i was impressed. Im lookiing at doing the same to a friends property in Thailand. Size is 24 MTRs x MTR high. Can you please tell me How thick is the galvanized steel, and how thick are the concrete sleepers. Also do you need to put a rust inhibitor onto the gal to prevent it from rusting. Thank you.
At the start of construction of the Victoria Line Tube in London UK. we built yards of this type of sleeper walling. Some was for sand/aggregate bins for the concrete batching plants. Other's were for the tunnels excavated spoil, where loading shovels could load muck away trucks with out chasing the clay around the yard.
Sleepers were cheap and if we supplied our own trucks, we'd get them for free. It was a great way to recycle them. It's more difficult now with old sleepers and telegraph poles as they were pressure coated in creosote which is a big no, no now.
Friends restoring a tug used in WWII needed a mast and approached the telephone company for a used one. Because of the creosote regulars they could not supply one. Instead the company donated a new one delivered it and lifted it in place with their crane truck.
Good one..il try to make my own cement walls too
i dont use fabrics on in the vertical a 3/4"gravel 100mm deep will hold all the silt back you want the wall to drain through the front as well as a the base
thank you for the handy video. how high do you fill behind the wall with drainage aggregate? does it need to be all the way from the agi drain to the top of the wall?
Depends on height but I leave about 200mm from the top with the last 1m high wall I did. I fill the gap at the top with top soil. As long as there is sufficient room for the water to drain down.
@@barakau Just be sure that you wrap the geofabric back to the wall over the top of the aggregate to prevent the soil getting in.
Fill about 1 third of the height with drainage gravel. Then the remainder with free draining material. Hope that helps!
I like this concept because it fits my needs for space, ease, & longevity for the project I have planned.
The US eq H beam galvanized is about $50/ft at this time. My personal project requires 43 beams varying in length above grade from 18" to 40". My frost line is 36"... so I am looking over 10k usd just for posts. Still have to source several hundred sqft of sleeper.
Not realistic at all for me.
So, I am thinking if I go this route, I would diy concrete posts to accept diy sleepers.
What spec/standard would a concrete post need to be made to? I was thinking 6"deepX8"wide with channels 2in deep by 3in wide, that would accept panels having a 2x3in tab but be 4" thick to sit flush with the front of the post. The below grade portion of the beam would be full dimension & sit on a concrete footer that is surrounded by gravel.
Using UHPC (10k+ psi & 1500+psi for both tensile & flexural) & perhaps inert rebar (basalt) to build both the posts & panels.
I am not a concrete guy or a structural engineer. I do work in precision manufacturing & can read & follow directions. Anyone with experience or thoughts on something like this?
This video, being 2 years old at this time, may not see a lot of traffic... I will be cutting & pasting this question in other videos.
and for your sleepers - you could use this approach (diy garden bed boxes) with some more substantial rebar in it - cost of materials is about $22 per sleeper from HD (7" tall x 2" deep x 60" long) if you use teh method he shows in Part 4 of the series - ua-cam.com/play/PLZIMIDEiQu3IwuRHd8teRV0VFOT5ldHK2.html - I'm looking at buildinga 48' long wall 36" tall using the sutter posts and diy sleepers - good luck!
@@AussieInSeattle Thanks for the reply.
I watched his series & a couple of the vids multiple times.
I settled on making a melamine form that makes 4 at a time & sleepers are 60"x 8x 4. 2pcs rebar.
Mix is 2 bags "regular" 2L cement 2L CSA flow enhancer & 2oz basalt fiber. I keep them wet while they dry & they can be demolded in about 6 hours (but I usually do just batch per day).
I did a test batch last fall & let them sit out all winter (lots of hot/cold cycles). No visible damage. I cantilevered one & stacked 10 sacks on the end.. no visible bending/cracking.
I found a local importer of "super posts" & am driving those every 30" on a slight inward angle (about 10deg). The sleepers will simply rest against them. They have holes in them... so I may bolt a steel cable near the tops of them & anchor the other end 5-10ft back into the gravel base I back fill with.
Hey mate, thanks for sharing! I have a question regarding the drainage. Do you need to have the ag pipe running along the retaining wall if you have weep holes along the wall? This is in clay type soil. The wall is 800mm at its highest sloping down to 200mm over 7 metres. Cheers.
Where do you get those type of post? Thank for the great videos
I would guess a steel supplier ? We did one with regular steel and pressure treated wood 21yrs ago and is still going strong.
bunnings sells H and C posts
Does the geofabric also last 60 years…?
I'm looking for someone to do retaining wall at my place in Brisbane Greenbank
I thought putting landscaping fabric vertically behind the retainer will cause the soil to harden over time with the water and can cause the ground to swell against the wall.
Maybe where you guys are, this isn't a problem.
He added pipe directly behind it then filled it with gravel. Then you add a couple inches topsoil for the foot or so behind the gravel fill. That’s how it should be done and how I believe he was saying but just didn’t show it.
Does Geofab just go against the site cut? Then over the crushed rock?
Any rebar in the concrete sleepers
Are you guys available in Canberra
Anyone know what he means by one in 16 and one in 10? What metric is this? Just trying to get an idea of how much of a lean back is needed.
for every 16mm vertical there needs to be 1mm of lean to the post.
e.g. a 1000mm high wall will lean back 160mm
Thanks Keegan. Really helpful. Especially with the example!
Keegan Barns Your example math is incorrect. You would push back 63mm if you have a 1000mm high wall.
1000/16 =62.5
Unit doesn't matter, whichever you use you'll get the same result. If your batter is say 1 to 6 (common for dry stone retaining walls), it simply means for every 6 units up there's 1 unit lean back. For every 6 cm/feet/meters/inches/millimeters/whatever, you lean back 1 of the same unit. The bigger number is height, the smaller number is lean back. So, for the examples in the video 1:16 or 1:10 means, for every 16 or 10 units you go up, you go 1 unit back. Be it inch, feet, centimeter, millimeter, ... it's all the same. As long as you use the same unit for both numbers.
☝🏼 Hes right. I just know it💪🏽💪🏽💪🏽
👍🏿👍🏿👍🏿💯💯💯
Thank you!
You have used timber studs to hold the post spans when setting the posts. Just wondering how you temporarily fix those to the steel posts?
Where can I buy this in the USA
Nowhere as far as I can tell. I've been looking too. I haven't seen the I-Beams or H posts, as they call them, either. I believe they are similar, if not the same, as a galvanized guardrail post. There are a few sites that sell reclaimed guardrails and posts which would likely work for a short retaining wall but it wouldn't be nearly as attractive in my opinion. I'd love to hear if there is a source here in the USA for the concrete sleepers and/or H posts if anyone knows of one.
@@Machinati It's a system commonly used in Australia and New Zealand, in the US landscapers tend to use the stacked block walls you see everywhere there.
In my country Netherlands retaining walls are usually made from stacked concrete elements, stone filled mesh baskets or masonry walls, but I liked the Australian system for its looks and ease of construction because of the relatively low weight of the materials, and the amount of earth that needs to be moved is less than with other construction methods as no full length concrete foundation is needed, just the holes for the posts.
So I looked for steel H column in a standard 100mm size (4 inches) and ordered these galvanised from a steel merchant in the desired lengths.
The infill I use are thick hardwood timber, as it does look very nice and is easier to handle when building the wall on your own, the hardwood is 50mmx150mm in size (2x6 in US sizes) and length is kept to 1m ( 3'4") between posts to be strong enough against the pressure of the soil.
Beneath the surface I use concrete pavement edging slabs 6" deep to prevent any aggregate from slipping underneath the wall to the low side, the slabs are the same length as the timbers.
You should be able to get these materials separately in the US from a steel merchant and timber yard, the use of real railroad ties between posts is an option too, but the H-column must be of an appropriate size for the ties to fit in, a 6"x6" or 8"x8" H column may be needed for that.
Bear in mind that the space inside the flanges of the H is less than the column size, for my 4"x4" H column this is about 3" between the flanges, the remaining space when sliding the 2" thick timber in is filled wit 1" battens screwed to the inside
In the USA call wheeler metals. For the H beam about $12 a ft right now
@@Machinati I-beams are sometimes called universal beams or RSJs here in Australia too. Maybe ask a steel supplier in the states about them and see what they've got?
Note that all the posts are galvanised and designed for this application here in Australia.
G'day Jason. Great vid!!
Got a rookie question..
In terms of a 1:10 or 1:16 fall back towards the side you're retaining, using a spirit level against the steel how far would the bubble be into one side of the lines on the level? Halfway on 1 side of the line, just touching the line, 1/4 over the line?
tape a piece of wood about 20 or 30mm thick 1mtr up the spirit level
Would it be cheaper to use block wall like CMU for similar height?
No it wouldnt
👏👌
Who does your engineering, manufacture or private surveyor's
Thomas & associates from Kurri Kurri Hunter Valley
only problem is the top is ugly. Need to work out how to put a capping
UC = Universal column
I'd be inclined to build a retaining wall leaning slightly into the soil behind.
If it's vertical and starts to topple, you are goosed, it will progressively get worse.
I'd build it leaning in. (But I'm no expert)
The dude literally said to do that exact thing... 😂
Hi, I need help... we want to build this wall but when we dig hole, it's hard for us to drill.... we think its stone.. at least it's very hard... can someone assist us with suggestions please? The soil is compressed shale
This system isn’t suitable for all soil types. One of its only disadvantages is the need to be able to dig down as deep. A block wall could be a more suitable option for you because the footing it sits on will be shallower but it will need to be wider on the contrary.
Each system has its pros and cons. It is definitely not a “one size fits all” situation, food for thought any ways… good luck 👍🏻
@@hendrikkruk8322 hi there, thank you for your reply.
Can you send me photos or link of what block wall you are referring too?
Kind regards
@@niknik3520 it depends on how many holes you can get as close to depth as possible. Also will the wall be under high levels of pressure structurally,, or is it's purpose more cosmetic? After initial excavation in shale it's unlikely ground will shift forward. So if you cannot get all holes to full depth you may consider reducing space between posts for extra strength. You'd have to get all holes no less than 75% off required depth.
Use a auger to dig the posts and u can hire them for cheap
6 foot fence, you go down 6 foot?
Retainer wall is not a fence
no entiendo Aussie
I would like to clarify - retaining walls built incorrectly with concrete, steel, wood or plastic will fail- period!
Retaining walls built correctly will last - period! We have all seen wooden retaining walls last for decades.
There are some railroad bridges over 100 years old- There is a retaining wall in Rockport Texas that cars drive by daily that was
built in 1943. Here's what to keep in mind- if you build it out of concrete you release over 20lbs of Co2 per cubic foot used-
If you build it our of steel you release over 30lbs of Co2 per cubic foot used- if you build it out of wood you sequester over 17lbs of Co2 per cubic foot used. If you build it right regardless of what you use, it will last past 60 years, you will save money and, if you use wood, you are using a renewable resource. But, if you do not know how to build with wood, stick with what you know!
CO2 is plant food; not some toxic gas. But your points on wall construction are appreciated🤔
It is okay to use timber... until the white ants / termites attack! I have seen wandoo sleepers, with a density rating of 1500, eaten hollow by white ants. Jarrah sleepers fare worse, as their density rating is only 800. Pine? Don't even go there!!!
@@Xalta_Sailor You're right! It's not the CO2 that's the problem. Without CO2 the world would be freezing and dead because CO2 traps the sun's warmth vital for life. But, the benefits of CO2 are constrained by water and heat. As you pass 40 degress celcius, the proteins in plants denature (cook), and photosynthesis starts to slow and eventually stop (leading to plant death). High CO2 without water is highly problematic! The reason CO2 emissions matter in the atmosphere is as it goes up it results in too much trapped heat. This leads to big changes to the hydrological cycle (more extreme rain, and less rain in between) and increases the frequency of extreme heat. Bottom line: emissions matter!