It is difficult to immediately answer the question “do I
need more reinforcement grid when my Allan Block wall is holding up my
driveway?” To properly answer that
question, we will first need to understand several things:
Typical Gravity Wall |
1. How tall is the wall?
2. How close is the driveway to the retaining
wall?
a.
Typically, if the surcharge (defined as
additional weight, and in this case, the driveway) is located closer than twice
the height of the wall, the structure will act as a surcharge……for example, if
you have a 4’ (1.2 m) tall wall, the surcharge would need to be 8’ (2.4 m) behind
the wall to avoid putting pressure on the wall.
3. What type of soil is the wall being constructed
in?
Driveway Surcharge Example |
So, when you are building a wall that is holding up your
driveway, these questions will need to be answered and will be the starting
point for the conversation on IF grid is needed, or more grid is needed. The quickest way to understand if grid is
needed is to reference our Retaining
Walls by Allan Block brochure, or talk with a local engineer. This brochure will walk you through the
“Plan, Design and Build” steps needed to properly layout and build your
retaining wall. In addition, you may
also want to check out various locations within our website such as these
simple gravity
wall charts. “Gravity walls” are
walls built without the assistance of grid or reinforcement and only use the
weight and setback of the block to perform.
So when you get ready to build with Allan Block, please don’t hesitate
to contact us, use our reference tools or talk with one of our dealers to
assist you in figuring out if your wall will need reinforcement (grid).
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