An old wall leaning or a slope sliding toward your driveway? We plan, form and pour a wall that holds the soil back and drains.
A concrete retaining wall is a formed and poured wall that holds back soil, and in Vacaville we build them to keep a slope in place and turn the ground beside it into level space you can use.
Most people call us when an old wall has started to lean, or when they want to cut into a slope to make room for a patio or a wider side yard. The price mostly turns on how tall and how long the wall is, what sits above it, how the water behind it gets out and how easily we can get the crew and the concrete to it. The schedule turns on whether the wall needs a permit and inspections before we pour. I'll measure it with you on site and put your own figure in a written estimate, with the work spelled out line by line.
I come out myself to look at the slope, ask what sits above it and write the estimate. Our own crew does the digging, forming and pouring, and I run the job, so the person who planned your wall is there when it's built.
I learned this work pulling forms and wheeling concrete on summer crews, then started this business in 2013. Thirteen years on, we're still known for slowing down and walking you through a wall before anything gets poured, including the parts that end up buried.
We're licensed and insured, and I'll go over both at the estimate so you can check them instead of taking my word for it. A retaining wall holds up part of your yard, so you should know exactly who's responsible for the work.
That promise covers retaining walls the same as driveways and patios. When you're ready, call (707) 514-3389 or send us a request with the wall's rough height and length and what sits above it, and I'll set a time to come out.
We reply within one business day, whether you call or send this form. I'll set a time to come out, look at the slope and what sits above it, and write you a free estimate on site. There's no pressure and no obligation.
I won't guess whether your wall needs a permit, because that depends on where you are and what the wall holds up. Inside City limits, the Vacaville Building Division reviews all new construction and applies the state building code with the city's own changes, so that's the office that decides for your address. Solano County's list of work that needs no permit leaves out retaining walls 4 feet tall or less, measured from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall, but not when the wall holds up extra load like a driveway or a slope. The county issues permits only to a licensed contractor, the property owner or their certified agent, and checks the contractor's license and workers comp coverage first. When a wall needs a permit, we handle the application and set up the inspections, and I check each address with the office before we plan the pour.
Around Vacaville and nearby in Fairfield and Davis, most of the walls we're asked about hold back a backyard slope, make room beside a driveway or replace an older wall that has started to lean. We do the same work across the cities around us, and if your city isn't named on the site, call and ask.
A retaining wall in the Bay Area usually costs about $50 to $65 per square foot, and that's a general figure for walls across the region, not our price. Your wall moves up or down from there with its height and length, what sits above it, how it drains and how easy it is to reach. I'll give you your own number in the estimate once I've seen the site.
Give the soil behind it a way out, with drains or loose, free-draining backfill, so water can't build up and push on the wall. Drainage is part of the design, not an add-on, so ask every contractor you talk to how their wall will drain and expect a clear answer.
You can, but close tiers get treated like one tall wall. One national code guide says tiers set closer than roughly twice the lower wall's height act as a single wall and are designed together. If you're picturing a stepped layout, I'll go over the spacing with you before we price it.
A fence on top changes the load on the wall, so it needs to be part of the plan before the wall is designed. One code guide says to mention the fence when you apply for the permit, not at inspection. I'd rather hear about it on the first visit.
The state license board, CSLB, has a concrete contractor class that covers forming, pouring, placing, finishing and installing concrete work. A poured retaining wall is that kind of job, so ask any contractor you're considering which license they hold.
Most of the calendar goes to the steps around the pour, the permit review if your wall needs one, the inspections and the cure. City inspections happen only on City business days, not holidays, so a week with a holiday in it can push things back. We don't backfill against the wall until the concrete has cured.
