Concrete retaining walls in Midland TX - a wall that drains well and holds the dirt back

A poured concrete retaining wall in Midland usually costs about $34 to $37 per square foot of wall, installed, with the digging, site prep, pouring and basic finishing. Taking out an old wall, curves, stamped or multi-colored concrete, walls taller than 3 feet and hard ground can push a job past that. Your written estimate shows what your wall includes.

Block is often cheaper, at least by the block industry's own numbers. The concrete masonry trade group says segmental walls, the stacked block kind, typically cost 25 to 40 percent less than poured walls, so keep in mind who's saying it. If budget is your main concern, ask us to price both for your yard.

Poor drainage is by far the most common reason retaining walls perform badly, according to engineering guidance, and left alone it can lead to outright failure. A sound plan keeps water from building up behind the wall with surface drainage, gravel backfill that drains freely and outlets like weep holes or a drain pipe. It's also worth asking whether the drain needs a filter, since one may be needed to keep fine soil from clogging it.

A gravity wall stays up by its own weight and the weight of the soil behind it, with little or no steel, while a cantilever wall is reinforced concrete on a footing, and the soil resting on the back part of that footing gives it most of its hold. The type decides how much steel goes in, so when you compare bids, ask each contractor which one they're planning. On a tight lot, some cantilever walls use only the back or front part of the footing so it doesn't cross the property line.

Ask the city before anything is dug, because Midland requires a building permit for most construction, and its list names new construction, additions, remodeling, repairs and detached accessory buildings rather than retaining walls. When a permit is needed, the property owner or a licensed and bonded contractor acting for them pulls it, and the city wants most projects done by a contractor who's licensed, bonded and registered with it. We can apply as your contractor or help you apply yourself, and doing the work on your own home doesn't get you out of the permit or its fees.

A Midland permit expires if work doesn't start within 180 days of it being issued, or if work stops for more than 180 days in a row. Either way you'd need a new application, and the city takes extension requests at 432-685-7390. We wait for the permit before we start and keep those limits in mind when we schedule.