While a retaining wall can be a beautiful landscape element as well as complementing the architectural style of your home, they serve an important purpose. The primary purpose of a retaining wall is to maintain a stabilizing structure that holds sloping ground in place, preventing erosion and movement of soil. It is important that the retaining wall be substantial and sturdy enough to accommodate and redistribute any pressure caused by sloping ground.

For this reason, when retaining walls fail, the results can be costly. A failed retaining wall can lead to collapse, damage to the surrounding property, or improper drainage in areas where water builds up.

Western PA, including the Pittsburgh area, is a region with many hills as well as new home building and business site expansion. There are also many older homes in Pittsburgh with older retaining walls, and these do not last forever, and knowing the proper signs to indicate that your retaining wall may need repaired or replaced will prevent any problems down the road. Some indications that your current retaining wall may need repaired or replaced are:

While it may be tempting to perform a “Do-It-Yourself” project or a “quick fix,” retaining walls are complicated structures that must be properly installed, particularly with the harsh elements of the Pittsburgh seasons. A properly built retaining wall must have a proper foundation, adequate drainage, and be constructed strong enough to withstand the harsher elements. Poorly built retaining walls that don’t adhere to these standards are many times doomed to fail, causing more damage as well as being more costly to fix.

If your retaining wall is showing any of these signs, or whether you are looking to add a new retaining wall to your property, contact 20 Landscaping. Serving Pittsburgh’s landscaping and hardscaping needs since 2003,  20 Landscaping  has the tools and the expertise to ensure that your retaining wall is properly constructed, but designed in such a way to enhance the beauty of your property.

For more information on retaining walls in Pittsburgh, or any of 20 Landscaping’s other services, contact them today, where the experienced and professional staff welcomes any questions that you may have.