Concrete Retaining wall advice (using bunker/mafia/bin block)

Tacoma747

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2005
Location
Winston-Salem
I hope to soon start on a retaining wall where I will be building my shop, my plan is to build it with the large concrete blocks, basically like big Legos. Has anyone done this or had any experience with it? Obviously it is something I only want to do once.... I have found blocks in Kernersville for $30/each for 2x2x6ft blocks, bad thing is I have to haul them probably 6 at a time to my land in Pinnacle. They weigh about 4,000 each...

Anyways, my thoughts are to build the wall like my high quality drawing shows, I am hoping to stay at 3 high, but might have to do 4 high in a section of the wall. I will lean them towards the wall and backfill as I go up. Gravel base, about a foot of gravel behind the bottom block, then 2-3 feet of dirt and maybe more gravel? I don't care if the wall 'seeps', i'd rather water come through the wall than push it over...

Any advice appreciated.

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Damn that's cheaper than the concrete cost. I assume they're used?
 
I was thinking along the lines of getting it delivered by the yard and building these things. I didn't think that they might make them themselves out of extra.

Do they come from the concrete plants?
 
I was thinking along the lines of getting it delivered by the yard and building these things. I didn't think that they might make them themselves out of extra.

Do they come from the concrete plants?

Most concrete plants make their own of some sort. Some have patterns some don't. They are basically getting paid for the concrete twice.


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Anyway you can divert water from the top of the wall? Like cut a swell 6’ from the wall so water won’t collect/drain down/through?
 
I'd put a drain line at the bottom of the wall and use more gravel on the bottom and go up at least one more row with gravel as well. The gravel won't compact like soil will or push like soil will


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You will need a good sub grade that is very well packed so they don’t sink down a bunch.
Also, waterproofers use drain board with dimples and fabric to let water run down into a French drain and flow away. Not a real need since you don’t care about the seepage, but at only $100/roll (200sqft) may be worth it. 4’x50’ roll

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But that’s not real important. Mainly want to make sure you have a good compact base for the blocks.
 
When I drove for another company, & they had tractor trailer flatbeds, we occasionally got contracted to haul the blocks for the supplier. If I remember, I used to haul 12 blocks, on a 40' trailer. Sometimes Size made a difference. I just hauled whatever they put on me. Don't know what the weight was. MOST of the time I delivered to a contractor that was used to loading & unloading the blocks. And they had the right equipment! No idea what the delivery cost, but I expect the supplier would know & could set it up. Cost probably based on mileage, & 1 hour time to unload. After that you run the risk of paying "Standing time" on the truck.
 
You will need a good sub grade that is very well packed so they don’t sink down a bunch.
Also, waterproofers use drain board with dimples and fabric to let water run down into a French drain and flow away. Not a real need since you don’t care about the seepage, but at only $100/roll (200sqft) may be worth it. 4’x50’ roll

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But that’s not real important. Mainly want to make sure you have a good compact base for the blocks.


Like the looks of that. Source to buy it?
 
@rodney eppes I have a 20-ton tag along trailer, technically I could probably get by hauling 8 on it at a time. I don't have room for a semi truck to turn around, nor could a semi truck actually make it up my driveway. I know for a fact I will have to lock it in 6x6 to get up the driveway pulling that weight.
 
I will run the bulldozer over where the blocks will sit to pack it, then add gravel base, put the first row of blocks and backfill with gravel.

I have wondered if I should add one of the 4" plastic perforated french drain pipes inside the gravel or not?

I figure at the very top I will make a sort of a ditch to catch run off as there is a hill coming down towards the wall. I do have a 'road' a little above the wall which will divert most of the water away from the wall.
 
Typical bin blocks weigh in at around 2,000 lbs. you should be able to get quite a few on your trailer.

The smaller ones yes, the 2x2x6 ones are about 4k. There seems to be a huge variance on styles and sizes. Luckily loflin does the 6 footers. Another place quoted me $60 each for 3x2x6 blocks, they said their Moffitt has trouble with them.
 
Like the looks of that. Source to buy it?

I sell it. I am an outside sales rep for Guaranteed Supply Company. My main focus is concrete forming, flat work, and waterproofing. Send me a PM when you’re ready. We have everything concrete/waterproofing related.
 
As said, I would put a french drain in about halfway up the bottom block and fill above it with gravel to the middle row.

Are the blocks your getting going to have the nesting ridges in them? If so, you might have to modify the blocks to turn the ones sideways and have them sit flush. With the weight of those blocks, I dont know that you really need any anchors, esp if the wall leaned into the bank slightly, but it wont hurt as long as they all stack tightly.
 
One yard of concrete is roughly 4k. 2*2*6=24³ ft which equals 3600#. Might be able to haul an extra one. I just bought 15 of them for a project , I'll try to post a picture tomorrow. I moved them with skid steer, was surprised it picked them up
 
Not sure if you can call it 'work', so I played today and graded some more. Actually dug a big hole and buried a brush pile was the big accomplishment, but this is the wall. The tallest section will need 4 blocks, although I might can just knock some dirt off the bank and use three, not sure how that will play out yet.

My skid steer SHOULD handle the 6ft blocks, but if it won't I can always use the wrecker truck, which might be the safer option anyways.
 

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Dude, why does that look like deep ocean swales? Can't you grade FLAT with that dozer? :flipoff2:

NOPE! Haha, it's harder than it looks! But actually it has looked better than that before, not a finish grade yet anyways. Kevin and Jonah showed up this afternoon @CasterTroy , so Kevin got to play on the dozer some and Jonah used the excavator. I should start charging people to come play haha.
 
@Tacoma747 What brand/size of excavator did you end up getting?
 
@jeepinmatt I got an old Komatsu PC50uu-1. It was an impulse bid, but luckily so far it has worked fine, it may need a set of tracks but I am going to run these till they fall off. I will be adding a (mechanical, not hydraulic) thumb to it for sure though.

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I've set about 70 of these on my property. Carl Rose and Sons out if elkin. They delivered about half of them on their straight septic truck, 8 at a time, for a $50 fee.

Yes, they are 3700#. I only hauled 4 at a time on my f450 and 24' deck over.

They also have 2x2x3 to aid in the "brick" laying pattern.

A 416 cat back hoe loader would struggle to place them 3 high- had to swing the boom nearly full extension to counter weight the loader bucket. Small kubota excavator could move them on flat ground with the weight pulled against the backfill blade, but that's about it. I did not lean them in or dead leg, and have had no issues of pushing away, the bottom string is troughed 6" in the ground.


Friend built a new log cabin, we built a wall with these 200' long, 8' high. Back filled for yard. Inspector made us dead leg them and French drain every 40 feet. We dead legged with steel cable and another block buried in the back fill. 8 years and no swelling of the wall. He even flagstoned the entire wall, looks fantastic.



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@jeepinmatt I got an old Komatsu PC50uu-1. It was an impulse bid, but luckily so far it has worked fine, it may need a set of tracks but I am going to run these till they fall off. I will be adding a (mechanical, not hydraulic) thumb to it for sure though.

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Nice! Why mechanical? No valving for hydraulic? Not sure if you've seen the Amulet Hoeclamp, but its a fully mechanical thumb that is articulated by bucket motion. No idea on price, but pretty dang cool. HoeClamp - Amulet Manufacturing Company, INC.
 
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