So You Think That Retaining Wall
Needs To Be Replaced?
I had to look at a retaining wall in Fair Oaks that needs to be fixed. These short walls are usually installed to hold back the soil which may create a problem in the future. Dirt can erode with the rains, building a wall will not only hold back the soil it can help level the land so that the grade is not as steep. But what about when the walls start to fail?
When I went to see the walls that needed repair, I had no idea what I was going to be looking at. This photo is the view that I had as I walked toward the building. There are many things wrong with this whole idea. First the home is much too close to the retaining wall. Note that I said the house was too close and not the wall. This wall was here first, the house had a unpermitted room added to the original structure. Originally, there was probably a concrete patio slab with the retaining walls around it to create a usable flat area behind the home.
So imagine this concrete slab which extends outside the walls of this addition collecting dirt and water from the storms, clogged gutters, and rotted retaining wall boards. Where is the water going to go? Well it is already on the slab outside the walls, it will travel under the walls of the home and into the added room. That is exactly what has happened. There is a musty smell in that room because water is getting in.
Now the retaining wall is a problem here but not the cause. The posts to the wall have been sitting in water and dirt for some time and have rotted, that’s why it is leaning. Something needs to be done with both the retaining wall and the addition, they are two separate issues. One will not solve the other.
The owners may not like hearing what I have to say about the whole project but I don’t see an easy resolution. The retaining walls need to be moved way back and a better drainage system installed. Of course, removing the unpermitted room addition has got to be a part of that conversation too! Maybe some of these potential problems would have come up if permits were applied for in the first place.
If you are having problems with moisture at your home in Fair Oaks, contact a local contractor with experience in water damage and dry rot repair.
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