Retaining wall construction in Lancaster CA - a wall that drains and holds your slope
Soil washing onto the patio or an old wall starting to lean? We build retaining walls that drain and keep the slope where it belongs.
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- Retaining wall construction
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- (661) 952-4077
How can you tell your slope needs a retaining wall?
Dirt sliding onto the patio
A bank of soil keeps washing down onto your patio, walkway or the side of the house after the sprinklers run or a storm passes. That usually means nothing is holding the slope, and every season it carries a little more dirt closer to whatever sits at the bottom.
An old wall leaning out
The top of a wall has tipped toward you, or a crack has opened with soil pushing through the gap. Most of the time water has built up behind it with nowhere to go, and a wall that has started moving tends to keep going until it's rebuilt.
A slope you can't use
Part of the yard is a hill you can't mow, plant or set a table on, and a wall can turn it into flat ground. This one can wait, and it's the easiest kind to plan because nothing is failing yet.
What does building a retaining wall in Lancaster involve?
Retaining wall construction in Lancaster, CA means building a wall that holds back a slope or raised soil so you get flat, usable ground that stays put. The right type depends on how tall the wall is, the soil behind it and your budget, and looks come after that.
Most calls we get start with a bank of dirt creeping onto a patio or an old wall that has started to lean. The price mostly follows the wall's height and length, the type of wall it calls for and how much drainage and engineering it needs, and the schedule turns on whether it's tall enough to need an engineer's calculations and a city permit before we can dig. We're based in Lancaster and work across the Antelope Valley, we're licensed and fully insured, and when a wall needs a permit we apply for it as your contractor. My written estimate gives you your own figure and says what we'd build and why.
Details to note before an estimate
- Rough wall height and length
- Distance from the property line
- What sits above the slope
- Photos of the slope or old wall
How we build a retaining wall
I start every wall by planning how the water behind it will get out, because wet soil pushes much harder than dry soil, and years of patching block walls for a property management company showed me what happens when nobody planned for it. Next I measure how close the wall will sit to the property line, since some wall types need a footing that reaches back under the soil and a tight lot may not have the room. Once the design and any permit are settled, our crew digs out, packs the base, forms and pours the footing, builds the wall, sets the drainage so water has a way out, backfills behind it and cleans up before we leave.
A new wall often turns up other work around it. If you have an older brick or stone wall elsewhere on the property that's worth keeping, masonry restoration can bring it back without tearing it out. Once a slope becomes a flat terrace, plenty of people want somewhere to sit by a fire, so we also handle fireplace installation.
Work that often goes with a new wall
Masonry restoration
Older brick or stone walls with crumbling mortar or loose pieces can often be repaired and kept, rather than torn down and built again.
Fireplace installation
Flat ground from a terraced slope is a natural spot for an outdoor fireplace, and we can build one that matches the new wall.
What happens after you call about a retaining wall
Call or send a message
Tell us what's going on with the slope or the old wall, and we'll get back to you to set a time. Photos help if you have them handy.
I come out and measure
I measure the height and the distance to the property line, look at where water goes and figure out what's behind the problem. You get a written estimate in plain words that says what wall we'd build, how it drains and why.
We permit and build it
When the wall needs a permit, we apply for it before any work begins and set up the city's inspections, which happen at points during construction. Our own crew does the work, and I check in while it's underway.
Walk the finished wall together
I walk the finished wall with you and show you where the water comes out, and you can ask me anything as many times as you like. Satisfaction guaranteed on every job.
Questions before you build a retaining wall
Do I need a permit for a short retaining wall in Lancaster?
Not if the wall is no taller than 4 feet, measured from the bottom of its footing, and isn't holding up extra load above it, like a driveway or more slope, under the City of Lancaster's rules. Anything taller or loaded needs a permit from the city's Building and Safety office before any work begins. Because the measurement starts at the footing, a wall that looks short above the dirt can still come in over 4 feet, so I measure it that way before we decide.
How much does a retaining wall cost in Lancaster, CA?
Building a retaining wall in Los Angeles usually costs about $2,700 to $11,800 per project, which makes a fair starting guide for Lancaster but isn't our price. Height, length, the wall type, drainage and whether engineering and a permit are needed decide where a job lands. My written estimate on site gives you the figure for your wall.
What is the best way to choose a retaining wall type for my yard?
Start with the height, because one engineer's guide says that under 4 feet a gravity wall, which holds the soil back by its own weight, is almost always the most economical, while from 4 to 12 feet cantilever walls and reinforced-soil walls compete. Cantilever walls use much less concrete than solid gravity walls but take more design and careful building. They also need a footing that reaches back under the soil behind the wall, so one right on the property line may not have room.
Why does drainage behind a retaining wall matter?
Drainage matters because water trapped behind a retaining wall can double the sideways push on it, according to one engineer's guide, and gravity walls are especially sensitive to it. The guide calls a gravel drain with a perforated pipe along the base, tied to an outlet, the minimum. Whoever you hire, ask them how the water will leave.
Do I need an engineer for a retaining wall in Lancaster?
Yes, if the wall needs a permit, because Lancaster asks for approved site plans and stamped engineered calculations with the application, so the engineer's work comes first. One engineer's guide also says a concrete cantilever wall needs a soils report on how much weight the ground can carry and a structural engineer to design the steel inside it. I'll tell you at the estimate whether your wall is likely to need one.
What causes the ground behind a retaining wall to sink?
Dry soil can lose volume when it gets wet, when more weight goes on it, or both, and state highway guidance calls this collapsible soil. That guidance lists sprinklers, leaking pipes, leaking pools and changes in rain runoff among the ways soil gets wet. I'll ask about all of those near your wall before we settle on a design.
Get a written estimate for your retaining wall
We reply within one business day to set a time, and the on-site visit and quote are free with no obligation. I come out myself, look at the slope and where the water goes, and write down what we'd build and why.
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Get your retaining wall planned right
Call R&L Lancaster Concrete and Masonry at (661) 952-4077 or use the form, and have the wall's rough height, its distance from the property line and a few photos of the slope ready so the first visit covers more.