Retaining Wall Excavation in Cincinnati, OH

Retaining wall excavation is the earthwork that makes a wall work: removing an old or failed wall, cutting into the slope, preparing a level, compacted base or footing, placing drainage stone and pipe behind the wall, and backfilling in layers. Around Cincinnati, where so many yards are terraced into hillsides, walls are everywhere, and many older timber and block walls are leaning, bulging or rotting.

Why walls fail

Most walls fail from water, not weight. When clay behind a wall gets saturated, pressure builds until the wall tips or bulges. A properly built wall has free-draining stone behind it, a perforated pipe at the base that outlets somewhere safe, and compacted backfill above. Skipping the drainage is the most common shortcut and the most common cause of failure.

Height, engineers and permits

HomeGuide notes that most cities require permits for walls over about 3 to 4 feet, and that walls 4 feet or taller usually need a structural engineer's design and deeper foundations. On Cincinnati hillsides with colluvium, an engineer's input matters even more, because cutting into the toe of a slope to build a wall can trigger movement if the cut is too large or left open too long.

Our part

We excavate to the wall builder's or engineer's plan, keeping cuts as short and as briefly open as possible, and work in sections on unstable slopes. We place and compact the base, set drainage stone and pipe, and backfill in compacted lifts as the wall goes up. Spoil is placed on flat ground or hauled, never stacked on the slope above.

Replacing an old wall

Removing a failed timber or block wall means supporting the slope while the old wall comes out. HomeGuide lists old wall demolition at $15 to $30 per linear foot. New walls run roughly $15 to $40 per square foot for concrete block and $20 to $45 for poured concrete, with sloped yards adding 50 percent or more.