Stone retaining wall construction firm in Colorado
Ledgestone retaining wall building firm in Colorado: First of all, what is No Fines Concrete (NFC)? Basically it is just what the name suggests, concrete without any fine aggregates or sand. It consists of generally an aggregate (gravel), cement and water. The aggregate is coated with the cement slurry binding it together, it dries with the strength of concrete but with voids or air pockets. This makes the NFC light weight and allows water to pass through its honeycomb texture.
Which retaining wall blocks are best? These solid blocks are heavy. Lighter, hollow blocks are available, but they can’t be split because cutting them will expose the voids. Also, some hollow blocks require individual backfilling, which is time consuming. These pros prefer Versa-Lok blocks, which are held together with pins rather than a lip on the bottom because pinned blocks work better on tighter curves, and the flat bottom makes them easier to stack. They have also found that the small back lip on some lipped blocks can be prone to cracking, which will weaken the wall.
Reducing soil erosion, turning steep slopes into terraced backdrops, creating focal points in the landscape—retaining walls serve many purposes. Indeed, they are some of the most common ways to correct problems caused by hilly areas! Well-built retaining walls transform unworkable inclines into usable outdoor space for the garden. Despite their simple appearance, though, these walls require a good deal of planning—sometimes professional engineering—to keep their shape. Soil is heavy, especially when soaking wet from a recent rainstorm, so a basic retaining wall (four feet tall and 15 feet long) potentially has to support up to 20 tons of soil pressure. With every additional foot of height, the pressure of the soil increases substantially. Miscalculate your construction plans, and you could end up with a weak wall that risks bulging or, worse, collapsing altogether. For just this reason, retaining walls taller than four feet should be designed and constructed by the pros.
Perhaps not as builder-friendly for the first-time DIY’er, a concrete retaining wall can nevertheless provide maximum protection for any property against drainage and erosion problems. According to the experts at Quikrete, unlike brick and stone, walls built with concrete do not require additional reinforcement because the width of the base and the weight of the wall provide adequate structural support. The most important step in constructing a strong, attractive concrete wall is building a sturdy, accurate form. Wall forms must be strong enough to withstand the great pressure exerted by the wet concrete; any failure in the forms will be disastrous. A straight wall form is constructed of 1/2-inch, 5/8-inch or 3/4-inch exterior grade plywood sheathing, studs, spacers, ties and walls. Sheathing forms the mold, while studs back up and support the sheathing. Discover even more information on Colorado Retaining Wall Builder.
Colorado Retaining Wall specializes in the building and repair of retaining walls. Whether the wall is for a backyard or driveway of a residence or a commercial Shopping Center, we design and build large block walls for all Earth retention requirements. We have the ability to fortify the wall with shotcrete or soil nails which would include helical tie-backs or micropiles. Nearly every wall we build requires engineering and we have deep relationships with engineers that work hand-in-hand with our foremen regardless of the size of project. Please read our reviews and look and our photo gallery.