Sleeper retaining wall?

[rjm2k]

Our garden is on a slope, a previous owner excavated an area out of it to store a caravan, currently there is a small wall holding the lawn back from this area. We are looking to fill in the excavated gap which is approx 3m x 6m and someone suggested using sleepers rather than building another wall.

The highest point would be roughly 0.5m and the lowest is smaller. I estimate we would need 8 2.4m 250mm x 125mm sleepers (2 high giving 500mm hight in total) and would probably bolt them onto cut down concrete fence posts concreted into place and buried under the soil we will fill it with.

Does this sound like a good idea?

TIA

 

[charles5001]

yes, i've just done exactly that, and used metal strapping to secure the sleepers to the fence posts... the posts were cut off about 10cm below the level of the sleepers so they are hidden by soil.

 

[rjm2k]

yes, i've just done exactly that, and used metal strapping to secure the sleepers to the fence posts... the posts were cut off about 10cm below the level of the sleepers so they are hidden by soil.

Thanks, any chance of a photo of the end result? Might help the wife decide it's ok.

 

[wrathkeg]

this might help

http://www.pavingexpert.com/featur08.htm

 

[charles5001]

here you are!

gard1

• charles5001
• 10 Apr 2013
• 1

gard2

• charles5001
• 10 Apr 2013
• 1

 

[rjm2k]

Thanks all! Any reason you used wooden posts rather than concrete? Just easier to work with and probably last as long as the sleepers anyway I guess? Were they concreted into place or did you use post spikes?

 

[charles5001]

I used wooden posts because they are easily replaced.

They are tied in behind the sleepers using multiple steel straps. The posts are simply sitting in 'concrete-in post supports'. They are like metposts but much shorter and flat-ended to sit in concrete.

If I could have found concrete posts that I could have cut with a saw to suit, I would have!

When the posts eventually rot away (10+ years), I guess I'll take the wall apart and replace the posts - which won't be too much of a job.

By the way, the sleepers are sitting on tanelised decking boards to keep them off the ground. The sleepers are solid oak and were about £24 each.

Cheers!

 

[kbdiy]

Glad I found your post as I'm looking to do something very similar with sleepers and the hidden fixing sounds ideal. Just wondering if there is any benefit to sitting them on the decking boards? I would have thought being oak they wouldn't need any further protection?

 

[wrathkeg]

and i'm curious as to how you cut them, especially what looks like an angled cut on the topmost sleeper, in the corner.

 

[charles5001]

The decking boards were useful in that they provided a very flat surface onto which the sleepers were placed. If they provide any rot protection that's a bonus.

The sleepers were cut with a circular saw from each side - very carefully as the blade was not deep enough to go through in one go.