Retaining Wall French Drain Design

If you re building a retaining wall on a hillside.

Retaining wall french drain design.

However retaining walls are built with a certain capacity in mind. A drainage system can have many different components including a french drain drywell closed tubing catch basins and pop up emitters. However if you do this the size of the dry well will have to accommodate more water and the dimensions will be different than if it was needed only for the retaining wall piping. Often retaining walls are used to terrace yards that originally had a steep slope additionally retaining walls can help create usable outdoor space as well as control erosion see landscaping a split level home low retaining walls are frequently used as planting beds and can add interest to an.

Proper drainage is critical to the performance of any retaining wall system. You want to intercept the water in the soil before it reaches any structure that water will corrode or erode. A retaining wall is built to hold back a certain amount of soil. Why proper drainage is important for retaining wall performance.

Otherwise water moving down the hill will build up behind the wall and undermine it. Drain pipes go behind the wall on the side with the surcharge the soil that that wall or foundation is holding back. In this blog post we ll be discussing french drains and drywells and how to install them correctly. A french drain is a virtual necessity when building a retaining wall on a hill.

Install french drains at the foundation perimeter of your house. These can be led directly into the dry well. Check out this video for some simple instructions on installing a french drain behind an 18 to 24 tall retaining wall before it is backfilled with dirt. The photos we show in this article show a french drain being constructed behind a low retaining wall.

It should be located on the uphill side of the wall so it can catch water running down the hill and prevent it from undermining the wall. If you re building a retaining wall add a french drain behind the first course of stones or blocks. The design of a properly built retaining wall resists the force of the soil behind it and prevents caving buckling or leaning. A retaining wall is intended to hold back soil when there is a drastic change in elevation.

The pipe should rest on the same compacted gravel base or concrete footing that supports the wall. I think you are on the wrong side of that retaining wall. Next the trench should be lined with ground sheeting this is available at most builders merchants.