Concrete retaining walls in La Verne CA - a wall that drains and holds your yard
If your slope is washing down or an old wall is leaning, we build a concrete wall planned around where the water goes.
- Fully licensed and insured.
- Free in-person estimates.
- Expect a reply within 1 business day.
How do you build a retaining wall that won't lean or leak?
A concrete retaining wall holds back the soil where your yard changes level, either by its own weight or with steel reinforcement on a concrete footing, and in La Verne we build each one around a plan for the water that collects behind it.
Most calls start the same way. A slope is creeping toward the patio, an old wall has started to tip, or you want level ground where the yard runs uphill. The price turns mostly on the wall's height and length, whether an old wall has to come out, how hard the ground is to dig and what finish you want on the face. The schedule depends on whether the wall needs an engineer's design and a city permit before we pour, and on curing, the wait while the concrete gains strength before soil is packed against it. After I've seen your yard, the written estimate puts your own wall in figures.
How can you tell your slope needs a retaining wall, or your old wall needs replacing?
Wall leaning outward
If the top of the wall has tipped toward you or a long crack runs across it, the soil behind it is usually pushing harder than the wall was built for, often because water has nowhere to go. A lean rarely corrects itself, and the longer it goes, the more of the wall usually has to come out.
Wet stains at the base
Damp streaks, white crust or mud at the foot of the wall mean water is working through or under it instead of leaving through a drain. That water softens the soil the footing sits on, so it's worth looking at before the next rainy season.
Slope washing onto the patio
If soil slumps onto a walk or patio after a storm, or there's no wall at all where the yard drops, the slope is moving a little at a time. Each storm carries more of it down, and soil piled against a fence or the house brings problems of its own.
How we build a concrete retaining wall
Before anything is dug, I look at where the water behind the wall will go, because a wall that can't drain is holding back water as well as soil. I also ask whether you're planning a driveway or any regrading near the wall, so it's built for what will actually sit above it, and for taller walls we build from an engineer's design. Then our crew digs out and packs the base for the footing, the wide concrete foot the wall stands on. We set the rebar, the steel that keeps the wall together under load, then form and pour the wall. Behind it go drain rock and a pipe to carry the water out, then backfill packed in layers, and we shape the ground on top so rain runs away from the wall. If the budget is tight, I'd rather you spend it on the footing and the drain than on a stamped or colored face, because those are buried on the first day and can't be fixed later without taking the wall apart.
A retaining wall is often the first step of a bigger change to the yard. If the wall makes room for a shop, a garage or a lower room set into the slope, we can follow it with concrete floor installation on the new level ground. When a wall turns a sloped backyard into usable space, it's often the start of a pool area, and we can pour the concrete pool decks as well.
Low walls at a yard edge
These suit a planter, a garden bed or a small step in the yard, where a solid wall can hold the soil by its own weight without much steel. They cost less and go in faster, but they still need a way for water to get out from behind them.
Taller walls holding a slope
These suit a backyard that climbs steeply or a cut made for a patio, where the wall needs steel and a wider footing to carry the load. They're the walls where the design and the drain matter most, and they cost more because of it.
Tell us about your slope, and get a retaining wall estimate
Expect a reply within 1 business day so we can set a time to visit. I come out myself, look over your slope, ask how you use the yard and leave you a free written estimate. There's no pressure to book, and you're welcome to compare it with other bids.
(840) 588-1377Building concrete retaining walls in La Verne
In La Verne, the city issues permits for construction work, checks building plans and inspects the work for code compliance. Whether your wall needs a permit is the city's decision, so we check with them on every job, and where a permit is needed we handle the application and set up the inspections. If you'd like to ask them yourself, you can reach the city's Building Department at 909-596-8706. One more point belongs in the plan early. Where the state has found that weak soil or rock may lie under a property, that ground can fail in an earthquake and damage what's built on it unless the grading and construction take proper precautions, so on a lot like that, the footing and drainage have to be designed with it in mind.
Many of the calls we get here are for backyards that step up toward the foothills, where a low wall was never enough or an old one has started to lean. We're based in La Verne and work across the cities around it, and we see the same stepped yards on jobs in Glendora and San Dimas.
What happens when you call about a retaining wall in La Verne?
Call or send a request
Call (840) 588-1377 or use the form, and tell us a little about the wall and where it goes. We'll get back to you to set a time for a visit.
I visit and write the estimate
I come out myself, look over the slope and the ground above and below it, and ask how you use the space. You get a written estimate for the wall we'd build, so you can compare bids on the plan as well as the price.
We plan, pour and walk it
Before we start, we go over the plan, the city steps and what to expect while the concrete cures. When the work is done, I walk the finished wall with you.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a concrete retaining wall cost near La Verne?
A poured concrete retaining wall in Los Angeles usually costs about $12 to $54 per square foot installed. That range is for a wall about 3 feet high and covers site prep, digging, filter fabric, ready-mix concrete, gravel backfill and the steel reinforcement. Taking out an old wall, stamped or multi-colored concrete, curves, more height and difficult soil all push it higher, and your written estimate gives you the figure for your own wall.
Why does drainage matter so much for a retaining wall?
Poor drainage is by far the most common reason retaining walls perform badly. Water trapped behind a wall can greatly increase the load on it and push through as leaks, so when you compare bids, please ask each contractor how the water will get out. As I mentioned above, that's where we start.
Which type of concrete retaining wall is best for my yard?
The right type mostly depends on how tall the wall needs to be. One engineering design guide lists gravity walls, which hold soil by their own weight, for heights up to 3 feet, and cantilever walls, the most common reinforced type, for 4 to 25 feet. A taller wall means steel inside and a T-shaped base that reaches back under the soil, so it takes more room and more digging.
How do I keep a retaining wall draining over the years?
Ask for drain outlets that can be reached and cleaned, because weep holes, the small openings that let water out through the face of a wall, are likely to clog over its life. A drain that can be serviced keeps a wall draining more reliably, and it helps to keep the outlets clear of mulch and soil.
Do I need a licensed contractor to build a small retaining wall in California?
Usually, yes, because California exempts minor work from a contractor's license only when the total contract price, labor and materials included, is less than $500. That exemption also ends when the work is part of a larger project, so a small wall built as part of a new patio or a yard rebuild still calls for a licensed contractor.
How do I know how big my retaining wall footing should be?
The footing, the steel, the drain and the soil the wall is sized for should come from the project's design or the building code, because the wall's height alone isn't enough to size it. A driveway planned near the wall or a change in the fill behind it belongs in that design from the start, since either one can undo what the design assumed. That's why taller walls get an engineer's design before we build.
La Verne, CA
Plan your retaining wall before you dig
When you call (840) 588-1377 or send the form, please include the wall's planned height and length, a few photos of the slope and any driveway plans nearby, because those change how the wall gets designed.