Large gabion retaining wall build

[Dave-1]

J

[EricL]

Hello @Dave-1 

Thank you so much for sharing your gabion retaining wall project. What an awesome build, seeing it come together was fantastic. The spirals you made to hold the cages was ingenious, it certainly saves you from having to individually stitch up the ends of the cage. Your efforts have really paid off as the front of the cages look fantastic.

Again, thank you for sharing such an inspirational project.

Eric

[KatieC]

Fantastic project @Dave-1! 

You have created a stunning feature retaining wall that has added some lovely curb appeal to your home. Thank you for sharing your process, I am sure many of our Workshop members will be inspired to tackle their own retaining wall. 

Katie

[Dave-1]

Thank you

I have actually planted around 12 cherry tomatoe plants along the wall for the past season... Thye have gone nuts! Thye love the reflected heat and the heat that is shed from the concrete during the evenings. I will see if I have an updated photo

Dave

[TheHandySqirrel]

Well done @Dave-1!

I'm wondering if gabion retaining walls need any foundation? While you did compact the soil, I'm thinking having compacted road base might give you a better foundation. Was that an option you considered?

[EricL]

Hi @TheHandySqirrel 

Let me tag @Dave-1 to make sure they are aware of your kind words and questions. I believe the gabion walls bulk and weight serves as its own foundation as it slowly settles into the ground. It is an ideal retaining wall as it lets water through and does not hold it behind itself.

Eric

[Dave-1]

@TheHandySqirrel 

Thank you

One of the things about gabion walls is the general rule I follow of -

If the wall is 400 wide then 800 High is the max ish I should be.

Where I live there is a heavy clay content in the soil and with the large footpriint of a gabion wall think along the lines of lying on a bed of nails, the weight is distribuated across the surface. Road base would maybe have made it more solid but I figure the sheer weight of the cages work in their favour. Any settling will happen as the cages are filled. 

I did Tamp the ground but what isnt seen is that I mostly shaved the ground to create a level surface (kept the ground compact/intact that way)

The section of the wall in the middle (where you can see a smaller cage at the very front is actually the only area that I was concerned with as I had dug a deep trench through for stormwater. By all rights I should have filled and tamped and filled and tamped every foot or so but I was stuffed after backfilling it all so was happy to just get the pipe buried.

I am about to post some free standing cage project and these are 300mm by around 900mm high. These have not moved in the past 8ish years.I will try and tag you when I post them. And yes I have a bunch of different Gabion walls, sizes and uses. 

Hope this answers  your questions, If not just ask some more

Dave

[Mishmash]

Love this. 
I am now wanting to put this in around our garden after our house refurb. 
it looks so great. 
Well done 😊

[MeganCooper]

 @Dave-1  This is amazing 🤩 im just fascinated with how your putting it together … 

Do you offer these to others as a landscaper? 

That’s interesting 🧐 I’ll remember that for when my wall goes in !! 

[MitchellMc]

I'm sure @Dave-1 will be delighted to hear that you're excited about their project @MeganCooper. We have a range of gabion cages that you could use to create your own wall. We can also order you the rocks for the cages through our supplier, ANL.

Since you're a fan of this project, I trust you'll be keen to check out this step-by-step guide on How to build a DIY gabion potting bench. 

Please let us know if you have any questions about building your own gabion wall.

Mitchell