Proper Drainage For Retaining Walls

If you are construction a retaining wall that is higher than two feet, there are some things you should do to ensure that it does not shift.

The construction of a retaining wall is very dependent on the foundation that the wall is sitting on. In some areas a retaining wall can be built directly on the ground, in other areas a concrete footing should be installed. If the ground soil has been disturbed over the last few years, or is the type of soil that compacts easily a footing should be installed to prevent the retaining wall from sinking.

In all cases, drainage of some sort should be installed on the inside base of the wall. Water laden soil can be twice as heavy as dry soil. The water moves down through the soil looking for an exit route, as it is saturates the soil it will apply a tremendous amount of pressure on the backside of the retaining wall. As there is nothing on the front side of the wall to apply pressure, the wall may begin to move forward especially near the top.

Drainage can be installed using perforated drainage pipe running perpendicular to the wall, installed at the inside base. If you use drainage pipe, the water that has saturated the soil will eventually find its way to the pipe and be directed away from the wall. The important point here is to have an exit for that water. This can be done by connecting to the home drainage system or by providing a 90° exit, through the retaining wall at the lowest point. When installing the drainage pipe place a layer of crushed stone all around the pipe to a thickness of at least one inch, two is even better. This prevents the holes in the drainage pipe from becoming clogged with soil.

Providing adequate drainage is important whether you are constructing your retaining wall from pressure treated lumber, railway ties, rocks or even if you are using cast concrete blocks that interlock on an angle as they sit on top of one another.

For additional information on landscaping products for your home or other renovation projects, visit Renovation Headquarters.

Consider Drainage When Landscaping

One of the most common and sometimes costly mistakes that is made when creating a new landscape is not paying attention to or having a drainage plan.

Through the desire to create an aesthetically beautiful property the homeowner may inadvertently forget that water comes from numerous sources. Rainwater not only wets the property directly, but indirectly as well. Rain falling on the roof of a home, generally collects in rain gutters and then is directed to down pipes. The down pipes then send the water through a spout to the lawn or driveway. If the landscaping has not been designed to direct the water away from home foundations, sever basement flooding and wall damage may occur.

Many properties have lot line grading, which allows for the flow of excess rainwater to be channeled between homes to roadways that have storm sewers others may have their backyards graded to allow for water to flow to the far end of the backyard and then be directed to a storm sewer. Inadvertently changing the grading, even by a few inches can channel the water in a different direction, such as your basement or worse, your neighbors.

If you are re-grading your property as part of your landscape project I would highly recommend the use of a laser level. Place the laser level at the corners of the buildings on your property and point them towards the direction of the drainage. If you discover objects, such as mounds of earth, planters, steps or walkways that are higher than the position of the laser level on the property you can do one of two things. Lower the level of the obstruction or make sure that there is an adequate drainage path around the obstruction.

The same problem exists for raised flower and vegetable beds. Water must drain naturally from these beds in order to avoid water collecting just below the surface of the ground and rotting the roots of the plants. Gravel bases should always be placed at the bottom of any earth mound to give the water a place to drain. Water relief channels should always be provided in retaining walls to avoid water collection that can cause walls to lean and if they are made of lumber the water will cause the lumber to rot. Excess ground water can also cause walkways to lift.

As with any landscaping project, proper planning is the key to success.

For additional information on landscaping your home or other renovation projects, visit Renovation Headquarters.

Lawn Drainage Issues!

You should always be considering proper drainage when designing your lawn. If the area you live in experiences a lot of rain throughout the year, then you will have to create a drainage system that will safely remove excess water.

Building small canals on the sides of your lawn may be enough to create proper water flow in case of flooding. This will depend on how your lawn is angled and if it slopes in any one direction. Many times puddling can be a problem. This can occur when too much rain falls and is concentrated in one area. You will realize you have puddling issues when you look outside your window and see your moat, but then realize you didn’t build a moat.

You may have to cover these areas with gravel or create small channels that will take the water away. Make sure your roof has gutters that can also take away excess water. You can buy extensions for the gutter system that will safely remove water from your yard. If not, you will have mini moats at the base of the gutters. This is not attractive.

Sewage and other underground plumbing

Breaking an underground water main could get you arrested in some areas, so it is wise that you do not break ground until you know what is under there. All too often people have an idea for a gazebo or underground bomb shelter, and while there is nothing wrong with these ideas, you will still have to be careful before digging too far into the ground.

If you break a water line or sewage line, you will have another moat situation on your hands. An expensive moat situation. You will have to call someone to come in and repair the pipes and get the excess water and other stuff from your lawn. It’s an embarrassing situation that you don’t want to have to discuss at the next neighborhood picnic.

Find the plumbing plans at your county clerk’s office or planning commission. These will give you a good idea of what is under the ground and the potential dangers you could face.

Terry Blackburn. Internet Marketing Consultant, living in South Shields in the North-East of England. Author and Producer of blog http://www.lawnsurgeon.blogspot.com Author of "Your Perfect Lawn," a 90 Page eBook devoted to Lawn Preparation, Lawn Care and Maintenance. Find it at http://www.lawnsurgeon.com

I would be very interested to have your comments on this Article.

RV Waster Water Odors; Gray Water and Sewer Water Solutions

Recreational Vehicles have holding tanks for the water that is used. The water for the showers, sinks, dishwashers and laundry go into the gray water tank and the water for the toilets along with all that waste goes into a sewer tank. Generally, this does not cause any issues, but sometimes it can cause problems and odor and therefore you need to monitor this situation, dump at a specified RV dump as needed and take care of odors as they occur.

The best thing I have found to eliminate odor in the sewer water holding tank is the Thetford Aqua-Kem RV products. They come in granulars, liquids or dissolvable tablets. You can have your choice of also non-formaldehyde odor control in Aqua-Kem Green and both are bio-degradable too. These products in the 64 ounce bottle last a very long time, over a year in fact even if you are dry camping full-time. Another product they make is Aqua Zyme, which actually eats the waste and that is a very nice idea too.

For gray water odor, which can occur if you allow your gray water holding tank to fill up too much or if it gets extremely hot where you are; I use Thetford Gray Water Odor Control in the 20 ounce bottle. I bought some about a year ago and the bottle is just under half full still. For the serious RV’er odor elimination is an important consideration and I hope you will consider all this in 2006.

"Lance Winslow" - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance in the Online Think Tank and solve the problems of the World; www.WorldThinkTank.net/