We at Kalberer Construction specialize in designing and constructing hardscaping features for landscapes, including patios, walkways, fire pits, and more. These features all serve practical purposes and are not purely decorative, but in our experience, some of their functions are more immediately necessary than others. For example, in a world with electric ovens and heaters available, no one really needs a fire pit. However, if your property is built on a slope, then you may need retaining walls to keep your land from shifting.
In this article, we’ll talk about what retaining walls do and how you can determine whether you need them for your own property. Before you simply assume that your yard is fine, ask yourself these three questions:
- Is downhill erosion a problem? As we mentioned above, the main purpose of retaining walls is to control downhill erosion. If your yard has a significant grade, then you may need to install retaining walls to keep soil in place and prevent minor landslides. Even if you don’t appear to have an erosion problem right now, a significant slope can create the right conditions for erosion to occur in the future.
- Do you want more usable land? Retaining walls can transform unusable steep slopes into stepped terraces. If you want to be able to use more of the available land in your yard, retaining walls can be an attractive and functional option for your property.
- Do you want to control water runoff? Lastly, you may want to install retaining walls to slow down rainwater runoff over your land. If the water runs off too quickly, it won’t have time to soak into your soil, which can cause your lawn and plants to suffer. By slowing down the flow of water, a retaining wall can give your plants more time to soak up nutrients.