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| Actually it's more like the Berlin Wall. One may ask; Why would you tear down a beautiful natural stone wall? The wall was in need of repair and the attached flower box needed to completely replaced. When working with natural stone walls, concrete footers need to be installed below the 'frost line'. Additionally the wall takes a lot of labor to build and this all adds up to a high price tag. |
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| The workers started early in the rain. |
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| We decided to go with the most economical product -a concrete product. The blocks are manufactured in Kansas City and weigh over 80lbs each. They are designed to interlock with each other and utilize a pin to hold them in place. The block is also designed to drain, work with shifting soil and last a lifetime. |
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| Backfilling and gravel are essential when using this block. We also used some drainage tile to ensure dryness. |
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| Some tuck pointing was needed on the foundation after we tore out the old retaining wall. |
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| These guys did all the work. We contacted 5 companies, 2 called us back and only 1 gave us an estimate. This guy showed up every day 45 minutes early and finished the job a day early. Believe me good contractors are hard to find and this guy is great! Check them out HERE. |
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| The only issue we ran into came about when they tore out the the old stone wall - They would have had to cut out a significant section of the concrete to get a straight line. Instead of simply filling it with more concrete which would have broke out eventually, Jeff suggested a product to fill the gap. The product is made by Quickrete and is called Polymeric Jointing Sand, it is used to join brick and natural stone and is a great flexible bond. |
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| After much debate between Sybil and I, went with the Limestone colored stone. Finished product! |
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| Some back filling will be added to cover the backside of the stone. |
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| The small cut out in the wall to the right of the stairs is connected to a length of drain tile. An herb garden and landscaping are our spring projects! |
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| Outdoor hurricanes will eventually line the right side of the stairs. |
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| Jeff did a great job of marrying our concrete work with his stone work. |
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| A last minute addition was to build this wall to seat height. |
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| Now we just need a fire pit and bring on the smores! |
