Concrete block walls in Athens GA - a retaining wall that holds your slope
A bank that keeps washing into the yard or an old wall starting to lean? We build reinforced block walls that hold the ground and drain well.
What does a concrete block wall need to hold back a slope?
A concrete block wall in Athens, GA holds back a slope so you get level ground for a yard, a patio or a driveway edge. A sound one sits on a concrete footing with steel bars standing up in the block cores, because that's what keeps the soil from tipping the wall over or sliding it out.
Most people call us when a bank keeps slumping, an old wall has started to lean, or they want flat ground where there's a hill, and if you're still deciding between block and another kind of retaining wall, I'll talk through what suits your slope. The price moves mostly with how tall and long the wall is and what the ground takes to get ready, and the schedule turns on the county's permit steps and the weather. Your written estimate lays out what your wall needs and why, and when the job needs a permit, we take care of the application and the inspections with Athens-Clarke County.
What happens after you call about a block wall in Athens?
Call us or send the form
You call (706) 395-0746 or send the form, and we set up a time for me to come out to your house. Weekday and weekend times both work for us.
I look at the slope with you
I come out myself, walk the spot with you, listen to what you've noticed about water and soil, and answer whatever you want to ask. Then I write up an estimate that says what we'll build, footing, steel and drainage included, and why, so you know exactly what you're paying for.
We handle the permit and build
Once you say yes, we file the permit, and since the county asks for the contractor's Georgia license with the application, it helps that we're fully licensed and insured. The county says complete applications are typically issued the next business day after it receives them, and then I work alongside our crew to build the wall.
Walk the finished wall together
When the wall is done, the county does a final inspection and issues a Certificate of Completion for it. I walk the finished wall with you and answer anything you're still wondering about.
How we build a concrete block wall, and the work that goes with it
The steel, the grout and the drainage behind the wall do the real work, so I plan those before we ever talk about the face or the cap. Our crew digs the footing down to firm, undisturbed soil or well-compacted fill, and deep enough to sit below where the ground freezes, because the footing is what holds the whole wall in place. We pour it, stand steel bars up out of it, lay the block over the steel and grout the cores, building the drainage in as the wall rises so water has a way out. Trade guidance keeps heavy equipment back from the top of a wall by at least the wall's height while soil goes back in, so we plan where the machines sit before the backfill starts. Then we set the cap, clean up the site and leave you a wall you'll like looking at.
The same block, steel and grout carry into other jobs around the house. If the wall is part of the house itself, like a crawlspace or basement wall, that's our foundation block wall installation work. Block also makes a sturdy core under a grill counter or pizza oven when we build outdoor kitchen masonry, with brick or stone on the face.
Get a written estimate for your block wall
We reply within one business day, and then I set a time to come out and look at the slope with you. The estimate is free, done at your home, and there's no obligation to go ahead. Backed by our satisfaction guarantee.
Questions about block walls in Athens
Does my retaining wall need a permit in Athens, GA?
Yes, if it's over 4 feet, because Athens-Clarke County Building Inspections requires a building permit for every retaining wall that tall, and each wall gets its own permit. When there's no site review, the county also wants a zoning permit from Planning before the building permit, and Transportation and Public Works may add a review of its own. For a shorter wall, Building Inspections is the office to ask, and I check with them before we dig.
What does Athens-Clarke County need before work starts on my wall?
Erosion and sediment control has to be in place before any digging or grading starts, so that goes in before our crew breaks ground. If a FEMA flood hazard zone lies on or next to your lot, or the wall is within 200 feet of a stream, lake or wetland, the county also wants a detailed site plan with the application. In Commerce, Jefferson, Monroe, Winder and the other cities around Athens, we work through the permit office for your address instead.
What is the best way to drain a block retaining wall?
Give the water a way out so it never collects behind the wall, because trapped water adds pressure and makes frost do more harm. Drains that pass through the wall are the usual start, and where heavy, prolonged rain is expected, trade guidance says a continuous drain along the back may be added. Your estimate will show how water leaves the soil behind your wall.
Is a crack in my concrete block wall a problem?
A thin crack in block is usually shrinkage, and the masonry industry's guidance says shrinkage cracks aren't a structural concern. Exposed walls above ground typically get control joints, planned breaks in the block, which keep moisture and air from working in and keep shrinkage cracks from spoiling the look. A crack that keeps widening or comes with a lean is a different matter, and that's worth having me come look at.
How much does a concrete block retaining wall cost in Athens?
There's no set price for one, because each wall is priced from its height, length and the ground it sits on, and I give you your figure in a written estimate after seeing the spot. A few choices move it the most, such as whether every block core is filled with grout or only the cells that hold steel, whether an old wall has to come out first, and how much drainage the slope needs.
How long does it take to build a block retaining wall?
It usually takes longer than the block work itself, because the permit steps, the weather and the time the masonry needs to gain strength set the pace. Trade guidance says soil goes back behind a wall only after the masonry has gained enough strength or the wall is braced, so we don't rush the backfill.
Other masonry work that pairs with block walls
Foundation block wall installation
When a new addition, crawlspace or basement needs walls that carry the house, block set on a proper footing gives you a solid base to build on.
Outdoor kitchen masonry
If the level ground your wall creates is meant for cooking outside, a block-built grill counter or oven base faced in brick or stone stands up to weather.
Get your block wall planned right
Call (706) 395-0746 or send the form with what the wall is for, roughly how tall it needs to be and where it sits on your lot, so I come out ready to talk about your slope.