DIYbanter - View Single Post - Building a retaining wall: Will this work?

(dg) wrote in message . com...
"Mike Taylor" wrote in message ...
your basis for stating what you have is? You have obviously checked out the
ground conditions and got the calculations on hand to confirm this type of
build at 10' high plus foundation havnt you?. I have to say what you have
suggested is seriously dangerous. You may be right but if the original
poster is correct with his height then I think you are wrong to suggest
anything except get a structural engineer in to specify.

Err, I only comment on what I know about, and yes I am qualified in
this aspect of structural design, thank you.
My comments are sufficiently lacking in detail to give the OP some
food for thought as a basis for further research.

He may only park a
car there but when a visitor arrives and the wall collapses on someone then
you obviously will stand up and say "I told him what to do" Please note it
is not only dangerous to have a structure like this but also to try to build
it. A 10' high wall of ground could be seriously unstable in itself.

BTW, this is a newsgroup where comments and opinions are offered. What
the OP does with those opinions is up to him.

dg

Sorry, dg, but you are wrong on this one. A 330mm blockwork wall will
never be strong enough to retain 3m of soil, even with no surcharge on
the retained side, no water etc. Your recommendation of bed joint
reinforcement is of no use unless each end of the wall is connected to
return walls (i.e. it can span both horizontally and vetically), and
even if they are then I am sure that the maximum area of steel (before
it becomes over-reinforced) would not be sufficient. Also, if the
cutting is made into a sloping hillside the soil pressures will be
greater and overall failure of the slope will also need to be checked.
There is insufficient information in the OP for ANY details....

I realise you are only passing on your opinion, but in the same
posting you say that your are qualified in this area and you know what
you are talking about. You normally talk sense, so some readers may
take all of your advise without question!

Sam