Need some advice on Building a retaining wall

[eclipseman]

All,
We have smallish structure (15ftx30ft) in our horse pasture that I am going to turn into a shelter for our horses (one side is open so when it rains or is hot they can freely walk in and out.) It currently houses a tractor. Anyways, one side of the shelter has a hill sloping down from it. Over the years the dirt/sand has slowly worn away. I can back fill it but it will likely continue to erode so I was thinking of building a small retaining wall. Cost is a factor, so the cheaper the better and worst case...it doesn't work am just back to where I am now. I was thinking of using something like 6x6s since they would deal better with frost heaving and such. The retaining wall will likely have to be 4-5 feet tall or so. Thoughts?

 

[Telemark]

Do you have access to rocks? If so, gabions would sort the problem.

 

[eclipseman]

Do you have access to rocks? If so, gabions would sort the problem.

We have rock walls all over the property (120acres) that I could scavenge from but that would be a TON of work I think. While I'm looking for more budget friendly solutions I'm also willing to spend a few bucks to save on breaking my back haha. the wall will need to run the entire long side of the structure which is 30ft and would need to be 4-5ft high. That would be a lot of rock haha.

 

[Telemark]

Do you have a machine to help you, like a tractor or excavator?

 

[eclipseman]

Do you have a machine to help you, like a tractor or excavator?

I do have access to a smaller tractor and 4wheelers but I don't think the tractor can get to where all the stone walls towards the back of the property. It could be done and is certainly the cheapest option but I think ill continue the search haha. I cant imagine how many loads of stone that would have to be.

 

[Telemark]

You might not have to build the wall up that high.

You could terrace the slope with a series of low rock walls, for example. This is especially effective if you can grow grass or something on top to prevent erosion.

Otherwise you could build a stone pile instead of a wall and slope the ground toward the ends of the building, compact the soil with a plate compactor, and put gravel on top. Hard to explain without a drawing.

 

[Telemark]

I'm assuming you already have a gutter. Is that correct?

 

[eclipseman]

I'm assuming you already have a gutter. Is that correct?

We just purchased the house/property. Honestly I'm 90% sure that structure does NOT have a gutter but stupid me I didn't even think of that maybe being enough... I will check when I get home. HAHAH I'm hoping it doesn't have a gutter and maybe that is the solution lol.

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

Can you take a picture showing the problem? That might help give some feedback.

I only have experience with the retaining walls that are made with the 80 pound interlocking blocks that are back filled with washed rock. Those retaining walls are very strong, but they are expensive and a lot of work to build.

 

[ksgobbler]

I had this one built last may. bought the bricks on sale at a local home improvement chain. Lady used a dingo to get a good flat base, then used sane and 1/2" chip for a base. She glued them as she went and ended up with this beast.

 

[ruskbucks]

How about building a diversion berm on the hill out of topsoil. When the water runs down the hill it will the berm and then drain to either one or both sides away from your shed.This way there should be no water running down toward your shed. Seed it with winter rye and grass seed as soon as your done. It would probably be a little safer for the horses too.

 

[Tree Spud]

Gutters to move water away from structure and drain tile line to deal with what the gutters don't capture .... if you don't move the water away, any retaining wall you build will fail over time.

 

[eclipseman]

Can you take a picture showing the problem? That might help give some feedback.

I only have experience with the retaining walls that are made with the 80 pound interlocking blocks that are back filled with washed rock. Those retaining walls are very strong, but they are expensive and a lot of work to build.

here are some pics. Sorry for the low quality it was starting to get dark. The one from far away if you look at the left side is where the "erosion" is occurring. The closer picture shows this. You can see in the far pic that to get to level ground the wall would need to be like 5ft tall which is the lowest point on the left side of the pic. Honestly, we have no idea how long this structure has been there. It could have taken a decade for it to erode that much so maybe just back filling it with more dirt will work for the next 10 years and maybe longer if we had rain gutters.

FYI, in the zoomed in pic you can see what appears to be a drainage pipe sticking out. My guess is that pipe used to be mostly under ground so you can see how much has eroded away based on that. The most erosion is mainly in that corner of the structure but that whole side is eroded. Id say to make the ground back to level from the inside the middle of that side needs to be raised about 3-4inches while those corners need about 8-12inches.

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

I'd bring in some gravel to fill in the washed out areas and put on gutters to control where the water goes. It looks to me like the water off the roof just washed away the dirt and over time that just pulled away more and more dirt. That small diameter drainage pipe might not be helping things either - that could be shooting some water out at a high velocity which will cause erosion.

I think that plan would buy you a decade or more, but if the hill below has erosion issues that could give you problems however you proceed.

 

[eclipseman]

I'd bring in some gravel to fill in the washed out areas and put on gutters to control where the water goes. It looks to me like the water off the roof just washed away the dirt and over time that just pulled away more and more dirt. That small diameter drainage pipe might not be helping things either - that could be shooting some water out at a high velocity which will cause erosion.

I think that plan would buy you a decade or more, but if the hill below has erosion issues that could give you problems however you proceed.

I'm not sure on the hill below but I don't think it has erosion issues as it is growing vegetation (wild grasses and such) which appear to be holding in place pretty well. That area doesn't get a ton of water shed so now that I'm thinking about it...I think the biggest issue has been the rain coming from the roof washing away the soil below. Backfilling and installing gutters maybe the cheapest and easiest solution. I bet if I cut down those smaller trees there, I could backfill with dirt even and try growing shady type grass there to help prevent erosion.