There may be an interesting situation for making a decision - what to get for the organization of the problem: an absolutely flat or sloping summer cottage. The first option is more familiar and simple. The second option is cheaper in execution, because areas with a rough surface are not so valued among novice summer residents, who are afraid of possible difficulties. Let's try to understand the topic and understand its secrets and intricacies. Perhaps the cottage on the slope is not as bad as it seems at first glance.
Advantages and disadvantages of the site with a slope
If it is good to analyze the care and arrangement of the site under the slope, you can identify both positive and negative points.
The main disadvantages are:
- choose the location of the country house, other buildings and garden bookmarks should be based on the slope, and not only at the request of the owner;
- washing the soil down after precipitation and melting snow;
- constant opposition to landslides and soil erosion is necessary;
- Difficult movement of people across the area of the site, especially during ice and rain - the greater the angle of the slope, the greater the risk of falling;
- the irrigation process is complicated, there may be difficulties in providing water;
- air flows can drain the upper part of the site, the lower can be exposed to frost;
- be prepared for uneven illumination - excessive or insufficient;
- significant material costs for improvement of the sloping site.
- the cost of the sloping section is much lower than that of the flat;
- during the construction of a country house, excess land goes to level the plot;
- gorgeous view from the windows;
- the elevated part of the site is devoid of the problems of flooding with groundwater, the cellar and the ground floor will be dry;
- an opportunity to realize all your ideas and wishes, to show individuality and create not just a summer house, but a real subject of pride.
Important! By planting on the slopes of bushes with branched roots, you can strengthen the soil in a natural way.
What are retaining walls for?
With the help of a retaining wall strengthen the cottage or garden area with a slope. The retaining wall is very functional, it strengthens the slope, prevents the destruction and leaching of the site, and can also become a highlight of the problem, zoning and decorating its territory.
For the qualitative performance of these functions, the following components are necessary - foundation for the foundation, the wall itself, one side of which holds the ground thickness, the second front side can be decorated, as well as drainage and drainage - for the outflow of water accumulating between the ground and the wall holding it. Low retaining walls look good in the design of the site with flower beds, flower beds, niches and wall benches.
What and how to make a retaining wall at the dacha
The retaining wall is a kind of wall that protects the unstable soil. The supporting wall can be built with your own hands. Concrete, stones, bricks, wood and other durable materials are used for its construction. Let's get acquainted with the technology of building retaining walls of different materials.
How to make a retaining wall of wood
For a wooden retaining wall fit any logs with a diameter of 200 mm. The main condition for long-term preservation of such a wall - pretreatment by means of rotting wood, taking into account the duration of the coating. A retaining wall made of logs, built on a plot with a slope, is the most advantageous method of strengthening the soil, which is applicable to both small and large slopes.
Logs can be mounted verticallyby driving them close together. This method of laying does not require a preliminary laying of the foundation. You need to dig in logs to a depth of at least half a meter, because the stability of the structure depends on the depth of digging. Horizontal laying of logs is also possible. A ditch is pulled out, rubble is poured to the bottom, the first log is laid, fixed in the ground with iron rods, then the remaining logs are alternately fastened together with nails or self-tapping screws.
The space from the wall to the ground should be filled with a mixture of sand and rubble or broken bricks. A good option would be to break a flower bed on such a retaining wall. This will provide vertical drainage, and the logs will become a beautiful frame of the planted plants.
Did you know? Placing the lighting in the retaining walls, you can give personality to the cottage and create a romantic mood.
Stone retaining wall option
Even a novice builder will be able to create a retaining wall of stone with his own hands. This option is beautiful in itself, and by greening the space between the stones, you will get a real decoration of your site. Before laying the stone you need to prepare the base of the future wall. A moat is dug half a meter deep, boards are laid along each side, and the resulting formwork is filled with concrete - 1 part of concrete, 6 parts of sand and 6 parts of gravel. The mixture should harden for at least four days.
Frozen concrete is treated with lime mortar. After that, the most painstaking work on laying stones that have been washed with water beforehand begins. Each stone needs to find the most stable position in the laying. The laid row of stones is coated with a thin layer of cement mortar.
The retaining wall of boulders, built with your own hands, will delight you with a slightly rough, wildish look. Selected and securely laid boulders and stones look most harmonious and natural in the landscape design of any site.
Dry stone retaining wall
It is possible to build a wall of stones dry masonry, without the use of cement mortar. In this case, the space between the stones can be filled with soil for subsequent landscaping. To establish the wall, a wide trench is dug up to half a meter deep, filled up to half with a layer of gravel, onto which washed stones are laid one on one, maintaining a slight inclination to the slope.
Block retaining wall
To install a wall of block stones, you need a trench wide in stone, gravel is poured and blocks are laid, which are held together with reinforcement. The laying of block stones is covered with finishing elements.
Important! Shthe baseline should be equal to three times the width of the future wall, and the thickness - the third part of the wall height.
How to make a retaining wall of gabions
Gabions will allow not to spend a lot of time for selection and accurate laying of stones among themselves for a qualitative laying. To build them, you need a network — a container with larger cells than the stones that fill it. The grid is filled with natural stones and mounted to a vertical plane.
Gabions are connected by strong wire. Gabion height of 1 meter requires a foundation for installation. To reduce the cost of the wall, the front part can be decorated with a beautiful stone, and the hidden internal part can be filled with rubble. The retaining wall of gabions in the country is applicable both to strengthen the slope and for terracing.
Formation of a retaining wall of brick
For the construction of a retaining wall of brick, the foundation is laid similarly to the laying of a stone wall. For the supporting wall you need a brick with good moisture-proof and frost-resistant characteristics. Low walls up to 0.6 meters can be built with half a brick; if higher, then a brick wide.
In the second row of bricks you need to lay drainage tubes every five bricks of masonry. Each layer of brick is smeared with cement mortar, and the next row of brick is laid. It is recommended to equip the top row of bricks with a rainwater discharge. The gap between the wall and the slope is covered with gravel or pebbles. Brick retaining wall will create a single ensemble with a brick house.
Did you know? Natural stone that harmoniously fits into any landscape of the site: granite, sandstone, basalt, cobblestone and quartzite.
How to install a retaining wall of concrete
Concrete retaining wall is very durable. Pre-digging ditch, the bottom of which is filled with gravel or rubble, from iron rods need to weld the frame. This reinforcement is placed in a dug channel, the formwork is laid along the channel walls, a drainage pipe is laid across the formwork, and the concrete mix is poured in from above. The result of this work will be a strong, durable, concrete structure, stiffened with iron reinforcement. It is possible to decorate a concrete wall with a beautiful tile, an artificial stone, to entwine with the weaving plants.
Features of the device retaining wall: how to make it so that under the structure does not accumulate water
The inner side of the retaining wall not only holds the soil of the site, but is also an obstacle to the natural flow of soil moisture, which is forced to accumulate along the wall. Having accumulated water will inevitably destroy the wall. To prevent the destruction of the wall, you can use a layer between the back side of the wall and the ground of rubble, broken brick or gravel. This layer filters water that drains into the drainage system.
Drainage holes of up to 100 mm are foreseen in advance in the wall or inclined tubules 50 mm in diameter are placed in it through each running meter of the wall. It is possible to place a longitudinal drainage from a perforated pipe with a diameter of 10-15 cm, wrapped with geotextiles, in the ground along the foundation. The material will absorb water that will seep into the pipe and flow down beyond the retaining wall.
Important! The layout of the sloping section starts from the upper terrace.
Terraces - the best solution when planning the different zones on the site with a slope. At the same time the site will resemble multi-level steps of various shapes and heights. Each of these steps will be an individual terrace, formed by its own supporting wall. The site with an average inclination level will require strengthening by approximately four retaining walls made of various materials.
In order to avoid the feeling of living on a huge staircase, it is better to place the terraces in cascades or ledges, perhaps a chaotic arrangement. This layout of the site will give it a very picturesque view. The upper and lower steps of the terraces are ideal for setting up a recreation area. You can arrange a gazebo or a viewing platform there. The winding ribbons of the tracks will decorate the design and make a walk in the garden or cottage a pleasant entertainment.
