Sunken slabs on a supporting wall, what to do? Please see images.

[playboxdesign]

Hi, any advice appreciated please.

Me - 54 year old women, up for some hard work and not afraid to learn or try. Limited tools but do have some.

Position - My yard backs onto another caravan plot higher than me (behind the fence). Years before there were bushes between the plots from what I heard and not a fence, whose roots may have held the earth better than a fence. I am situated in a valley of the River Severn so we have water heading down due to gravity. I did not build this ground supporting wall that is now moving slowly and falling apart.

Situation - I cannot remove the top layer of bricks and redo, therefore cannot remove the broken slabs which the bricks have been placed on due to the height and weight of the earth behind. Yes it can be done as had a reliable person look at it, but would be a big job of removing everything and supporting it all with major structural supports etc., so the caravan behind does not start falling into my yard :) - I don't want to go down this road, mainly for financial reasons.

Plan Of Action - Do the best to improve it aesthetically with a bit of strengthening.

So Far - to show my idea

I started on the left - before and after photos.

Left Before.jpg (366.9 KiB) Viewed 192 times

Left After.jpg (301.67 KiB) Viewed 192 times

Rest of Wall - I dont need to stand on this top area just need it to look better

Rest of Wall.jpg (381.99 KiB) Viewed 192 times

Broken Slabs

Broken Slab 1.jpg (644.44 KiB) Viewed 192 times

Broken slab 2.jpg (488.33 KiB) Viewed 192 times

Broken Slabs 3.jpg (336.88 KiB) Viewed 192 times

I cleared the rest and kind of repointed the brick and added mortar in the cracks to stop the plants growing. it's messy as I was going to pour another layer of mortar on and just paint, but not sure now...

Filled in Gaps.jpg (470.81 KiB) Viewed 192 times

I'd really like to level off more where the slabs are sunken. Any thoughts please? Should I be using cement as opposed to mortar to give more strength to the back wall of bricks? Or just leave as is, neaten the mortar and paint, enjoy it looking better and think about it all next year, etc.

Thank you in advance.

[dewaltdisney]

From what I can see this retaining wall is suffering from ground heave, not an unnatural occurrence in this sort of situation. The heave is caused by the weight of water in the soil (winter mainly) which expands and puts pressure on the walls which over time will start to lean, very small amounts(mm per year) In summer this dries out and the forces are diminished as the ground shrinks back but the same cycle occurs over the years until the lean becomes noticeable. Now given that you are not a muscle bound navvy my suggestion would be to start on the bottom tier and remove the soild until you can see any infil substrate. The ideal thing would be to fill the void with rubble, level it off, and lay the slabs square and level on top. You could do it in sections to avoid too much work in one go. Move up the tiers as you go and do the same thing depending on your findings. You did a fair job of the bit you have done so with some thought and planning you should be able to get it looking right. Understanding the job is key.

Good luck, let us know how you get on.

DWD

[playboxdesign]

Hi thank you for taking the time to reply.


Note - I don't want to slab the very top, happy for plants and grass to grow and add wild flowers.

The area in front is a vegetable planting area which I'll tidy and add wild flowers.

This was a photo i took last year or the year before, after the yearly paint etc. so doing the same but just worried about the 'the heave' as getting worse, although hopefully I have stopped plants growing out of the gaps this year.

Previous year.jpg (221.03 KiB) Viewed 177 times

I shouldn't have shown the left area without mentioning that I wasnt going to slab any more of the top - in fact I wasn't clear with my requirements at all thinking about it:

The point of contention is the broken slab area perhaps in your naming tier 2 - highlighted with white line?

Rest of Wall area.jpg (379.8 KiB) Viewed 177 times

Is what I have already done enough for the problem area or should I load in more cement? Also, as you can see from a previous years photo, that I will not be able to see it once plants grow this year.

[Someone-Else]

I will not be able to see it once plants grow this year.

Will that not be worse? If you can't see it, will it not be "too late" by the time you can see it?

[playboxdesign]

sorry dont understand your reply.

I have already done some work on it. Then my plan was to add some more mortar and smooth the area and then paint.

Filled in Gaps.jpg (470.81 KiB) Viewed 137 times

My Original question here was should I add some concrete to level the slab 'v's were sunk to perhaps add more strength or if anyone had any other ideas.

The reason I mentioned about not seeing it, was I meant the slabs don't have to 'look' perfect as will be hidden until the greenery dies again.

[playboxdesign]

RESOLVED

[moderator2]

playboxdesign, Do you want the thread locked?