Heard a contractor on the phone at Home Depot and it changed how I look at retaining walls

I was grabbing some weed barrier last Saturday and overheard this guy talking about how his retaining wall failed because he didn't put in proper drainage behind it. He said water buildup pushed the whole thing over in about 8 months, and now he's looking at a $3,000 fix. That got me thinking about all those cheap retaining wall kits people grab without thinking about what's happening behind the wall. I mean, I've done a few small walls myself and never even considered adding gravel and a pipe back there. Has anyone else run into this or have a wall that held up fine without drainage?

2 comments

2 Comments

wilson.emma1mo ago

My neighbor's wall failed after 2 years with no drainage. Cracks showed up in year one. He tried patching them but the whole thing tipped forward in a heavy rain. Did you ask the contractor how deep he dug the base footer? That matters almost as much as the gravel.

bettyhunt1mo ago

Hear me out but I think drainage can be a little overhyped for small residential walls under 3 feet. I built one with just gravel backfill and a few weeps holes drilled through the blocks and its been standing fine for 5 years now through some rough storms. That $3000 fix probably had more to do with a bad base than missing a pipe.