On Sun, 13 Jul 2008 18:57:54 -0400, "Percival P. Cassidy"
wrote:

Our railroad-tie retaining walls are collapsing after who-knows-how-many
years (here when we bought the house).

Other than buying replacement used railroad ties (most of which look
pretty bad already), I see two options:

1. a block wall. Should last a long time, but labor intensive to build.

2. a wall made not of railroad ties but of 6"x6"x8' landscaping timbers
(thus almost the same size as the RR ties they are replacing). The ones
I see advertised at present are described as "treated for non-structural
use" and have a 1-year warranty. Anybody used such things? How well do
they last in practice?

Perce


My landscaping timbers are 18 years old and still holding. I didn't
expect them to last this long. The rug juniper has spread and its
roots are holding the hillside from erosion, so the timbers are not
all that important.