Hello everyone!
We are now in our little house, and every day I spend several hours in the garden shoveling gravel and soil in various directions. But it’s about time we start thinking about supporting our terrain.
We need to retain a length of almost 42 meters (138 feet). The height will be about 1 meter (3.3 feet). We’ve already talked to a relative who is quite knowledgeable about this kind of work. He recommended simply building a formwork (50 cm (20 inches) deep into the ground and then 1 meter (3.3 feet) high) and pouring concrete into it—of course including reinforcement. This should be significantly cheaper than using L-shaped concrete blocks.
So far, so good.
However, I’m a bit hesitant about having to get all the OSB boards. We thought about pouring in 2 meter (6.5 feet) sections and then reusing the boards each time, but I’m still not really happy with that idea.
Now I’ve seen that formwork can also be rented. Somewhere I saw a picture of a curved formwork (which would also be a curve in our case). Does anyone have experience with this? Can anyone recommend something? Or do you have a completely different approach?
We are now in our little house, and every day I spend several hours in the garden shoveling gravel and soil in various directions. But it’s about time we start thinking about supporting our terrain.
We need to retain a length of almost 42 meters (138 feet). The height will be about 1 meter (3.3 feet). We’ve already talked to a relative who is quite knowledgeable about this kind of work. He recommended simply building a formwork (50 cm (20 inches) deep into the ground and then 1 meter (3.3 feet) high) and pouring concrete into it—of course including reinforcement. This should be significantly cheaper than using L-shaped concrete blocks.
So far, so good.
However, I’m a bit hesitant about having to get all the OSB boards. We thought about pouring in 2 meter (6.5 feet) sections and then reusing the boards each time, but I’m still not really happy with that idea.
Now I’ve seen that formwork can also be rented. Somewhere I saw a picture of a curved formwork (which would also be a curve in our case). Does anyone have experience with this? Can anyone recommend something? Or do you have a completely different approach?
B
Bieber08158 Aug 2017 10:29A slope is not an option?
I would suggest checking with major rental companies (Boels, etc.) to see if they offer formwork panels. You will probably need a (small?) excavator to dig the trench and to transport the formwork panels. You will also need reinforcing steel, ready-mix concrete for transport. Some measuring equipment might be necessary as well (line laser? batter board? tape measure? spirit level?)
50 cm (20 inches) deep? Is a structural calculation being done? Does it need to be founded below the frost line? Should you consult someone experienced with this? :P
I would suggest checking with major rental companies (Boels, etc.) to see if they offer formwork panels. You will probably need a (small?) excavator to dig the trench and to transport the formwork panels. You will also need reinforcing steel, ready-mix concrete for transport. Some measuring equipment might be necessary as well (line laser? batter board? tape measure? spirit level?)
50 cm (20 inches) deep? Is a structural calculation being done? Does it need to be founded below the frost line? Should you consult someone experienced with this? :P
A slope would be unfavorable. On one hand, it would take up too much of the property, and on the other, I would have to plant it and don’t want to deal with pruning every year.
I asked a local landlord about it. We might be lucky and get it done relatively cheaply.
We will dig the trench with a shovel. This is easy to do given the soft soil. The foundation will basically be frost-free. Then, soil will be placed firmly against the outside of the “wall” to make it fit. And if not... it’s just a fairly small retaining wall, bearing no load except the soil and the fence.
I asked a local landlord about it. We might be lucky and get it done relatively cheaply.
We will dig the trench with a shovel. This is easy to do given the soft soil. The foundation will basically be frost-free. Then, soil will be placed firmly against the outside of the “wall” to make it fit. And if not... it’s just a fairly small retaining wall, bearing no load except the soil and the fence.
K
Knallkörper8 Aug 2017 11:55Hello,
the L-shaped blocks cost 200 euros per linear meter at a height of 1 meter (3.3 feet), including foundation and installation.
If you only build short sections at a time, you will have to mix the concrete yourself. Do you feel confident doing this with exposed concrete quality? Can you compact it well enough for a good appearance?
the L-shaped blocks cost 200 euros per linear meter at a height of 1 meter (3.3 feet), including foundation and installation.
If you only build short sections at a time, you will have to mix the concrete yourself. Do you feel confident doing this with exposed concrete quality? Can you compact it well enough for a good appearance?
W
winnetou788 Aug 2017 12:11I would consider building a retaining wall out of natural stone. This can be easier for a layperson to accomplish than exposed concrete. You can also build only the front face and then use your panels from behind as formwork before pouring the concrete to the full width. The back doesn’t have to look neat. The advantage is that you can also shape your arch on the front.
The wall doesn’t need to look nice. I can hardly see it, and the forest doesn’t care either. Everything will grow over it anyway. It just needs to be functional.
200 euros per meter is already too expensive. At 42 meters, that gets way too costly. I’d rather build formwork myself and fill it section by section. We have the mixers for that.
I just don’t really feel like mixing it myself. Ideally, I’d have ready-mix concrete delivered. But that only makes sense if I do the entire length at once. It should be around 18 cubic meters (23.6 cubic yards) of concrete.
The rental service said that renting the formwork for this length would be about 1000 euros. Hmm, for that, I could just use OSB boards instead.
200 euros per meter is already too expensive. At 42 meters, that gets way too costly. I’d rather build formwork myself and fill it section by section. We have the mixers for that.
I just don’t really feel like mixing it myself. Ideally, I’d have ready-mix concrete delivered. But that only makes sense if I do the entire length at once. It should be around 18 cubic meters (23.6 cubic yards) of concrete.
The rental service said that renting the formwork for this length would be about 1000 euros. Hmm, for that, I could just use OSB boards instead.
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