Concrete Retaining Walls in Yuma AZ - Built to Drain and Hold Back the Slope
Dirt washing onto the patio or a slope creeping toward the yard? We pour a wall that holds the soil back and lets water out.
Retaining walls hold back soil. Good ones let water out.
A concrete retaining wall holds back soil where your yard changes level and takes the steady sideways push of that dirt. Around Yuma we usually see them along a sloped side yard, behind a patio cut into a rise, or where a lot drops toward the street.
People call when dirt washes onto the patio after a storm, an old wall starts to lean or crack, or the yard just won't stay level. A wall that gives way can push into a fence, a slab or the house, and concrete is hard to undo.
The price mostly moves with the wall's height and length, the footing, the drains and how easy the site is to reach. The schedule turns on the permit, the inspections and the cure, the days concrete needs to gain strength. Your written estimate spells out each part.
We plan retaining walls from behind. Water and footing come first.
On a wall, I'm most focused on where the water goes behind it. Rain and irrigation soak into the soil you're holding back, so we plan drains that can stay clear instead of plugging up with dirt and roots over the years.
We also go over the wall type and footing with you, because the part in the ground carries much of the load and you won't see it again once it's backfilled. I'd rather take a second look at the ground and the forms than rush a pour.
A retaining wall is more than its face. Here's the work.
Layout and wall choice
We set the wall's line and height to fit your slope, and help you pick the type of wall that suits the soil it has to hold.
Digging and the footing
We dig down to firm ground and pour the footing, the wide base in the ground, because that part carries much of the wall's load.
Steel and forms
We set rebar, the steel rods that keep the concrete from cracking apart under the soil's push, inside forms built to stay straight through the pour.
Drains behind the wall
We plan how water leaves the soil behind the wall, with drain rock and outlets placed so they can be reached and kept clear.
Backfill and grading
We fill behind the wall in layers instead of dumping it loose, and grade the top so rain runs away from the wall.
Level ground for what's next
A wall can square off a yard for concrete pool decks or a shop slab through our concrete floor installation, and we can plan both together.
Retaining wall, drains and footing done right. The yard holds.
When the dirt behind a wall goes in loose and nobody plans where the water runs, the soil gets heavy and pushes harder after every storm. That's when a wall leans, cracks along the top or bulges in the middle, and a skimpy footing leaves it nothing to stand on.
So we put the budget first into the footing, the drains and the backfill, the parts you can't see, and the look of the face second. Problem soils are reported across Arizona, Yuma included, so I look at each lot, and when the ground is in doubt a geotechnical soil test is the surest check.
One call gets it started. Here's how your wall gets built.
01. Call or send the form
Call (928) 291-0009 or send the form with where the wall would go and roughly how long and tall it is.
02. I come look
I come out myself, look over the slope and the ground, and ask what the wall has to hold up and how you'll use the yard.
03. Your written estimate
Your written estimate lists the wall type, footing, drains and backfill line by line. I check what the building office requires, and if a permit's needed we handle it.
04. We build and clean up
Our own crew builds it with me on site, pausing where the city inspects work before it's covered. Then we clean up and I walk the finished wall with you.
Tell us about your wall. We'll come take a look.
Send the wall's location, rough length and height, and photos of the slope, or call. We reply within one business day to set up a free, no-obligation on-site estimate.
(928) 291-0009We're based in Yuma. We build walls across the area.
We're based in Yuma and build retaining walls across the cities around it, including Fortuna Foothills and Somerton. If your city isn't listed, call (928) 291-0009 and ask.
Mon–Fri: 7 AM–10 PM, Sat–Sun: 6 AM–11 PM
Good questions before a retaining wall. Plain answers below.
Read through the answers below, and if your question isn't here, call (928) 291-0009 and I'll walk you through it.
How much does a concrete retaining wall cost in Yuma?
A poured concrete retaining wall in Yuma usually costs about $30 to $44 per square foot of wall face, the side you see. That's the going rate in the area, not our quote. Height, footing size, drains and site access move it, and your written estimate gives your figure.
Do I need a permit for a retaining wall in Yuma AZ?
Generally, yes. The city says new construction generally needs a permit, and its no-permit list names fencing and minor repairs, not retaining walls. Check your own wall with the Building Safety Division. Arizona's licence exemption for minor work stops once a job needs a permit, and we're licensed and insured.
What's the difference between a gravity and a cantilever retaining wall?
A gravity wall holds soil back with its own weight and little or no steel, while a cantilever wall is reinforced concrete standing on a footing. In a cantilever wall, the soil resting on the back of the footing gives most of the stability, so the footing matters as much as the wall you see.
Why does drainage matter so much behind a retaining wall?
Poor drainage is by far the most common reason retaining walls perform badly, and left alone it can end in a failed wall. Weep holes, small openings near the base, help in theory but often clog with backfill, plants, critters or trash, so ask any contractor how their drains will stay clear.
How tall can a retaining wall be in a Yuma front yard?
Yuma's zoning code allows no wall or fence over three feet tall within a required front yard setback. On a corner lot, walls over 30 inches are barred in the visibility triangle, the clear sight area at the corner. The code doesn't spell out how height is measured on a slope, so we settle that early.
Can you pour a retaining wall in Yuma's summer heat?
Yes, concrete poured in hot weather is generally about as durable as concrete poured in normal temperatures, as long as it reaches proper strength and curing keeps the surface from drying out. One supplier's hot-weather guide advises pouring at the time of day or night when conditions are best, so ask any crew about their curing plan and pour time.
Walls are one part of it. We pour the rest too.
- Concrete driveway building
- Concrete patio construction
- Stamped concrete services
- Concrete sidewalk building
- Garage floor concrete
- Decorative concrete
- Concrete floor installation
- Concrete pool decks
- Concrete steps construction
- Slab foundation building
- Foundation installation
- Concrete parking lot building
- Concrete footings
- Foundation raising
- Concrete cutting
Got a slope that won't stay put? Call M&K in Yuma.
Tell us where the wall would go and how high the ground rises, and we'll set a time to come look at the slope.
(928) 291-0009