Concrete retaining walls in Gardena, CA - built to drain and hold back the soil
Dirt washing onto your patio or an old wall leaning out? We build concrete retaining walls that drain and keep the soil where it belongs.
What does building a concrete retaining wall in Gardena involve?
A concrete retaining wall in Gardena holds back soil where your yard changes level and takes the sideways push that soil puts on it, and how well it drains behind decides how long it holds.
Most walls we're called about replace a leaning old one or hold up a raised yard, a planter bed or the soil along a driveway. We dig and pour a footing, the wide concrete base the wall stands on, set the steel and forms, pour the wall, then put the drain and fill behind it. If the job also includes a concrete pool deck or concrete floor installation, we set the grades together so water runs away from both.
Height and length drive most of the price, along with how much dirt comes out, the size of the footing and any slope or driveway above that adds load. Gardena reviews wall plans for strength and earthquake safety, and many projects need plans from a licensed engineer or architect, which adds cost and time before we dig. We check with the city for your address and pull the permit when one's needed, and the written estimate lays all of it out.
What goes into a concrete retaining wall
Most of a retaining wall's strength is in parts you won't see once the dirt goes back, so it helps to know what each one does before we dig.
A footing that carries it
The footing goes in first and carries everything, so it has to be wide and deep enough to keep the wall from tipping or sinking as the soil pushes.
Steel inside the wall
Rebar, the steel bar set inside the forms, ties the footing to the wall and holds the concrete together when the soil leans on it.
A way out for water
A drain line along the base and weep holes, small openings through the wall, give water behind it somewhere to go besides pushing on the concrete.
Curing before backfill
Curing is the wait while fresh concrete hardens and gains strength, so we let the wall set before any soil goes back against it.
Retaining wall questions from Gardena homeowners
How much does a concrete retaining wall cost in Gardena?
A concrete retaining wall in the Los Angeles area usually costs about $20 to $45 per square foot, and that's the going rate around here, not our price. Height, length, the footing, the digging and what goes behind the wall decide where yours lands, and if the budget's tight, cut a fancy face before you cut the drain and fill, because a face can be redone and what's behind it can't. I'll give you your own figure in the written estimate after I measure.
Do I need a permit for a retaining wall in Gardena?
Yes, unless the wall is under the city's exempt height and carries no surcharge, which is extra load from a slope or driveway above it. The city measures that height from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall, so the footing counts, and the Gardena Building Division can tell you the current exempt height. Skipping a required permit is illegal, causes problems when you sell, and can void fire and homeowner's insurance coverage for that work.
What causes a concrete retaining wall to lean or fail?
Studies of retaining walls find poor drainage is by far the most common cause, because water trapped behind a wall adds pressure it has to fight. Clay-type soil is hard to drain once it's soaked, so wall designs almost always call for a granular fill like gravel behind the wall to let water through and ease the push on it.
How do I keep retaining wall weep holes from clogging?
Keep plants, leaves and trash away from them and clear them out when you see one plugged, because a clogged weep hole stops draining and loses the whole point of having it. They usually clog from the wrong fill behind the wall, roots, critters or trash, so the right fill going in matters as much as the upkeep.
Does a contractor need a license to build a retaining wall in Gardena?
If the wall needs a permit, yes, because Gardena issues permits only to properly licensed people or those specifically exempt from the state's contractor license law. The state licensing board defines a concrete contractor as one who forms, pours, places, finishes and installs concrete, which covers every stage of building the wall.
What is the best way to compare retaining wall bids?
Start with what's behind the wall, since drainage is where most walls go wrong, and pass on any bid that doesn't name the drain and the fill. Then ask whether the wall will carry a surcharge, because that changes the permit, and check that the price covers the permit and any plans the city wants.
Why Gardena homeowners call H&J Gardena Concrete Contractors for retaining walls
We've been pouring concrete since 2017, and on a retaining wall I pay closest attention to what you can't see once the soil goes back.
The owner on your job
I look at your job myself, and when our crew builds the wall, I'm right there working with them.
Drainage and fill in the bid
Our bids spell out the drainage and the fill behind the wall, because that's what decides how a wall holds up.
Fully licensed and insured
We're fully licensed and insured, which you'll want before anyone digs a footing next to your house.
Straight answers at the estimate
If your wall needs plans, more height or a different spot, I'll tell you at the estimate, not a year later.
Your satisfaction, guaranteed
That's our promise on every wall, and it starts with a call to (424) 528-1322 or the form on this page.
Get your retaining wall measured and priced
Permit and plan work has to wrap up before the pour, so the sooner I see your wall, the sooner that gets started.
What happens after you call about a retaining wall in Gardena?
We plan the pour around the city's plan review, which should take about 10 business days the first time, or 5 for a revised set, unless special zoning or Planning Commission approval is needed.
Call or send the form
Call (424) 528-1322 or use the form, and have the wall's location, rough length, planned height and any slope or driveway above it ready.
I come out and measure
I look at the spot, the grade and what sits above it, then measure the wall myself before anything goes on paper.
Your written estimate
You get the work spelled out in writing, and if a permit's needed, we pull it and set the schedule around the city's review.
Pour and final walk
Our crew preps, forms, pours and finishes, with city inspectors checking permitted work along the way, and before we leave I walk the wall with you.