Timber Retaining Walls
Timber does most of the work in the Hutt Valley. A pole and rail wall goes up in a few days, costs less per metre than anything else, and holds a 1.2m step in level.
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Avalon, Wellington region
Retaining Walls in Avalon
Top Retaining Walls Lower Hutt builds retaining walls across Avalon, on the flat between Naenae and the river. Avalon is level ground with established sections, which means most walls here are about making a garden work rather than about holding a hillside in place.
- Timber, block, gabion, stone and engineered walls
- Full drainage behind every wall we build
- Consents lodged through Hutt City Council
- Drainage on every wall300mm of metal, a drain coil and geotextile. Never an optional extra.
- H5 poles as standardThe right treatment for timber that lives in wet ground.
- Consents handledHutt City, Upper Hutt and Wellington, start to finish.
- Itemised quotesYou see what the drainage and the spoil actually cost.
Garden walls rather than structural rescues
On level ground a retaining wall is usually a design decision. A wall across the middle of a back lawn turns a gentle fall into two flat usable levels. A raised bed along a fence line gives you somewhere to plant that is not lawn.
These are quick jobs, usually 400mm to 900mm, and most finish in a day or two. They need no consent as long as nothing loads them from above.
| Council for consents | Hutt City Council |
|---|---|
| Typical ground | Flat valley floor river gravel |
| Walls we build most here | Keystone block and timber pole |
| Consent threshold | 1.5m of retained ground, or any surcharge above the wall |
| Drainage | 300mm metal, perforated coil, geotextile, on every wall |
| Site visit | Free, with a written quote to follow |
Curves are easier than people expect
Keystone and other segmental blocks pivot slightly against each other, so a sweeping curve comes out smooth rather than faceted. On a flat Avalon section where the wall is a landscaping feature rather than a necessity, that opens up shapes straight timber simply cannot do.
Stone does the same thing. Straight timber rails cannot curve, though we can build a curve as a series of short straight facets if that suits the look you want.
Drainage still goes in
People are often surprised we run a coil behind a 600mm garden wall. Wet soil weighs roughly twice what dry soil weighs, and a bed you water all summer stays wet. In a valley this rainy it stays wet through winter on its own.
The trench is short on a small wall so the drainage costs very little. Rebuilding a rotted wall in eight years costs the entire job again.
Not sure whether your wall needs a consent? Send us a photo and a rough height. Under 1.5m of retained ground with nothing loading it from above is exempt. A driveway, a building, a pool or fill sloping up behind it is a surcharge, and that changes the answer.
Common questions
Retaining walls in Avalon: common questions
Can you build a curved retaining wall?
Yes, using segmental block like Keystone, or stone. Both step around a radius smoothly. Straight timber cannot, though we can facet it.
Do you take on small Avalon garden jobs?
Yes. A good share of our work is 6m to 12m of low wall, and small jobs get exactly the same drainage detail as big ones.
Wall types
Retaining walls we build in Avalon
Concrete and Block Retaining Walls
Concrete goes in wherever something heavy sits above the wall, and in a city built beside an active fault it is also what engineers reach for first. We build.
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Engineered Retaining Walls
Past 1.5m, or once a driveway or building sits above it, the job changes completely. You need a chartered engineer, a building consent from Hutt City Council and.
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Stone and Gabion Retaining Walls
Stone suits the Hutt hills, where a hard manufactured face can look wrong against bush and rock. The whole region is founded on greywacke, so local quarries put out.
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Answer three quick questions or call [PHONE] and we will book a free site visit.