How to revamp timber retaining wall?

chlojasmin

Hello! 

I’d love your help. We are looking to revamp our existing retaining wall. Pictures attached - the timber currently used is those  round logs. The wall is sturdy and we just don’t think it’s worth replacing. It’s also on a boundary fence.

Our ideas to revamp: 

- can we add to the height by somehow adding more logs? To make height consistent all the way across? (400mm)
- can we replace the logs without removing posts?
- can we cover the posts at the front with timber sleepers and build height that way? This way we can also stain and it would look like a new wall.  Not sure how this would work at the back to contain soil and also how to make the posts longer to support the sleepers…

any ideas would be appreciated!

thanks so much 🙂 

EricL

Hello @chlojasmin

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community. It's a pleasure to have you join us, and thank you for sharing your question about your timber retaining wall.

Adding more 75mm 2.4m Pole Splits H4 Treated Pine Round CCA is definitely a possibility. However, the posts might be short and will need to be replaced. I suggest taking them out one at a time so that you can reattach the ends. This would be a good time to assess the current condition of the sleepers and see if they are still in good shape.

The only difference of putting new with old is that the new sleepers will stand out, I suggest painting or staining them to get them to match together. This is on the condition that the old sleepers are still strong. However, if rot or age has set in, you'll have to replace the old ones.

Putting new sleepers in front of the half-round logs can be done. But it will make the entire assembly bulky as you'll have to put posts in the ground. I recommend removing the old retaining wall and put new sleepers in if you're going in that direction.  

Here is a handy step-by-step guide: How to build a retaining wall by @Adam_W

If you have any other questions we can help with, please let us know.

Eric