rsnik Posted May 21, 2011 Posted May 21, 2011 We rebuilt a retaining wall that had carried away this afternoon. Needless to day things went exceptionally well since this started this afternoon with two trips to buy 40, 80 pound bags of sackcrete. I had 10 tons of crushed asphalt on hand that were used as well. It was astonishing that this came together so fast and so well. It was a magic moment of dedicated team work. This is what us rednecks do for fun.
Willy Posted May 21, 2011 Posted May 21, 2011 Nice job!! Is that union labor, or just sandwiches and beer??:D
MPH Posted May 21, 2011 Posted May 21, 2011 You had quite the crew going. Not a bad looking wall for no sting lines being used. Good looking strawberries too.
rsnik Posted May 21, 2011 Author Posted May 21, 2011 Willy, These young men are actually embedded New York Times journalists. Just kidding. Marty, We used some small PVC pipe as a batten to establish the line and a lot of "mother's wit". Yes, the strawberries are coming on strong. After removing the winter straw I was shocked at how they had thinned out. However, the remaining plants have come on real strong in terms of growth and bloom. Hopefully, being well spaced apart this year the strawberry fruit rot will not be so bad.
Burntime Posted May 22, 2011 Posted May 22, 2011 Nice walls! Its hard work but it pays off. Heres a few of my messes.
Willy Posted May 22, 2011 Posted May 22, 2011 Jon I see you dumped the cement in the trench,what part did I miss? Did you wet it down or what? I will be build a wall around the patio and would like any pointers I can get. Also would you send me your crew they look like good help.:D
RayS Posted May 22, 2011 Posted May 22, 2011 It will draw moisture from the ground. You can do that with fence post as well.
Burntime Posted May 23, 2011 Posted May 23, 2011 May be different by you but by me we use traffic bond tamped down. We use a good 6 inchs plus.
IronPony Posted May 23, 2011 Posted May 23, 2011 Traffic bond? Is that the same as Class 5 road base? You guys do some really nice wall building and landscaping!! I am impressed.
Burntime Posted May 23, 2011 Posted May 23, 2011 TB is small stone and siftings. It will set up like concrete with some moisture. You just need to tamp it down well and build from there...
IronPony Posted May 23, 2011 Posted May 23, 2011 Sounds like TB is like Class 5 road base. Anyone else have an opinion?
Burntime Posted May 23, 2011 Posted May 23, 2011 They do put it down and then #2 or larger stone on top... May very well be the same thing with a different name. We have a lot of limestone by me so the indigenous rock may be whats used...
rsnik Posted May 23, 2011 Author Posted May 23, 2011 There is a large PA Landers aggregate processing yard nearby. Some major highways are paved with concrete around here. Other roads and highways are paved with asphalt. When they repave, I am sure you have seen the machine that grinds the old surface, be it concrete or asphalt, down to the binder coat before they repave. The material is collected and recycled by aggregate processing yards like PA Landers. I don't know about the concrete (much of it may turn to dust), but the ground asphalt paving becomes recycled aggregate. Asphalt is actually the tar like binder that is added to aggregate and becomes asphalt paving. There must be millions of yards of reprocessed asphalt at the aggregate plant waiting to get hauled off to become new pavement. They also sell another processed aggregate product which is a mix of the reprocessed asphalt and the ground concrete removed before repaving. This is what I buy and use for a number of projects. It's great for steep driveways down to the lower level. Put it down a foot thick on steep grades and compact it and you don't get pot holes or ruts, it sets up hard, is not dusty, will not wash out, weeds won't grow in it and it is just great stuff. I filled the trench about a foot deep with sackcrete and then smothered it with the processed aggregate. We then used a screed board to screed the excess aggregate, both pushing it away and pulling it towards you into an area I had box dutted, so it straddles the trench and encapsulates the dusty sackrete. I had lengths of inch thick oak hardwood flooring left over from when they put the floors in. I used that and the stinger weight with a donut off the LL 101 (worked great), bashing on the oak floor lengths to bash the stones in level, checking the work with a long mason's level. The aggregate compacts really well over the concrete, which, even when dry, has no give at all. It has rained ever since then, on and off, so that sackcrete should set any times now.
rsnik Posted May 23, 2011 Author Posted May 23, 2011 Burntime, I forgot to thank you for the complement, but there is no comparison. Your driveway entrance makes a statement like no other I have seen, other than in architectural magazines. The stonework around your home looks like it was built by a very talented hardscape contractor. Willy, Get the sandwiches and beer going, we're hopping on the next freight train that comes through town headed West. :D
Burntime Posted May 23, 2011 Posted May 23, 2011 Well Rsnik, I gotta tell you, I faked it:D I really did the work, just did a lot of planning and tylenol.sm00
rsnik Posted May 29, 2011 Author Posted May 29, 2011 Real quick, this is how things went today. Put down landscaper fabric in the excavated area behind the wall. I had 5, 2000 pound pallets of culled paver bricks from a project a couple years back. I dumped them behind the wall. Covered the bricks with more landscaper fabric and used the backhoe to pull the topsoil back over to fill the area. Came out nice.
Burntime Posted May 30, 2011 Posted May 30, 2011 Yep, drainage is your friend with retaining walls. If the dirt can not push on the wall it should last a long time! Very nice!!!
rsnik Posted May 30, 2011 Author Posted May 30, 2011 Mike, I think you are right and thanks for your kind words. You are light years ahead of me regards hardscape planning and execution so I take that as a great complement. :)
Burntime Posted May 30, 2011 Posted May 30, 2011 If I had it to do again there is a tumbled retaining block that is really cool looking. Maybe the next house...
Burntime Posted June 4, 2011 Posted June 4, 2011 Well I added some up lighting and low voltage to 2 of the beds. My pics 3 and 4 are here in nitetime form... also one with both of them.
Burntime Posted June 5, 2011 Posted June 5, 2011 Nope, they are now under round the clock surveillance!
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