How To Install Upright Sleepers

How to build a retaining wall with railway sleepers?

12 May 2022

How to build a retaining wall with railway sleepers?

How to build a retaining wall from UPRIGHT or VERTICALLY placed sleepers.
The advantage of using vertically placed railway sleepers is that you tin can vary the superlative of the wall in different places, and you tin can create a curved wall, rather than straight. Amalgam a retaining wall out of upright sleepers is pretty straightforward. Simply dig a trench, lower the sleepers in vertically next, and and then backfill with a dry physical mix, that you tin ram downwardly effectually the railway sleepers untill the wall is rigid. The advantage of a dry cement mix is that whilst constructing the wall, you can accept out and re-position the sleepers without getting wet concrete everywhere. If the footing is damp, the concrete will prepare without having to add together water. If non, only use a watering can or hose.

Having fixed the sleepers in place and prepare the concrete, you tin can also connect the backs of the sleepers together, with lengths of wood, metal strips or wire. That will help to strengthen the retaining sleeper wall, if there is any pressure at any ane point by soil pushing the sleepers forward. This organisation should equally piece of work in a curved wall situation.

The depth of the trench depends on the tiptop of the wall, and the pressure of the earth or fabric you are retaining. Allow for when the ground is sodden, and the pressure increases. Some landscapers go with the saying: 'ane tertiary in the ground, and two thirds out'. So, you'd probably need to be thinking of putting the sleepers in about 0.5m in the ground if the sleeper wall is 1m loftier.

Retrieve to recall well-nigh drainage. If there's going to exist water building upwards behind the wall, where volition information technology go? Some people place a layer of pea gravel, or drainage pipe at the base of the sleeper wall, before backfilling with soil, so that the h2o tin can exist channelled out.

How to build a retaining wall or raised bed using sleepers stacked horizontally.
The most important affair is that the sleepers are laid on a surface that is level and firm. Perfectionists and Engineers will practice this on a foundation of concrete, but more mortal people will often simply use gravel or hardcore or sand or even the soil itself if it is solid. At that place are advantages of using something that will enable drainage of the raised bed or retaining wall, otherwise you lot are constructing a raised pond !

If you are stacking the sleepers horizontally on theirbroadest side, e.chiliad. on the 250mm width of a 250mm x 125mm sleeper, and then all you lot need to do is to overlap the joints of the sleepers, from layer to layer, similar building a brick wall, and fasten each layer to the layer below with timberlok screws or similar. You accept at present created a structure that is interlocked, and could be picked up in 1 slice by a crane ! (If you lot had the inclination !) An exception to this, is if you build a long directly wall that is more than several sleepers high. In this case, you may need vertical retaining posts (or even sleepers), along the length of the wall, to support the wall from leaning forward. In this case, simply physical the vertical posts into the basis, and fasten the stacked sleepers to the posts with Timberlok sleeper screws. (see website page for sizes and details).

If you are stacking the sleepers horizontally on theirnarrowest side, due east.g. on the 125mm width (on a 250mm 10 125mm sleeper), and two or more sleepers high, then y'all will need to support the sleeper with vertical posts, to stop them being toppled over past the weight of the soil or whatever.. Simply dig a hole and fix the vertical retaining posts (or sleepers) in with physical. When you've washed that, yous can simply stack the sleepers against the post, and fasten together with Timberlok sleeper screws (See website folio for sizes and deatails)

An exception to this is if you are building a raised bed or pond that is square or rectangular in shape, and made up of only one sleeper per side. In this case you can connect all the sleepers together at the ninety degree corners without any retaining posts.

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