The Wall, Part 2 Upper Planter Box

View from Neighbors Driveway entrance (Rob and Kent)

 Welcome back!  Thanks for visiting.

This post is oriented to another part of completion.  This post is from a couple driveways uphill of us, and shows our steep driveway which is, to come extent, the impetus for this years project.

In this first photo you can't see any of the wall construction around our casa.  You can see the house, the stair along side it; and perhaps gain some of the perspective about WHY we wanted the UPPER PLANTER BOX.

Vew from next drive down (Callie and John)

Driving further down to Callie and John's driveway entrance, you can see where, technically, our drive begins. 

Going downhill the length of this drive is a retaining wall which provides stability for Callie and Johns land, and our land, and land above our house.  This is one long continuous wall.  It runs from their meter box post, down hill and across the back of our house.  And this wall is where the water control, extended upper retining wall, etc starts. 

J Wall now Stepped for final build

When you double click on the second photo to enlarge it, you can see the block work that is nearly at the level of the finished planter box in the last photo.  From up the drive, you can imagine the improvement to privacy that will result from planting a shock of bamboo in that upper and outer planter box. 

Upper planter Box Finished

This third photo shows how we've revised the J Wall, into three steps.  The lowest one is the height of the inside planter (lowest step, right side of photo).  The middle one is really to ensure a smoother transition when we build a wall on top of this blockwork, to create the INSIDE courtyard.    We were thinking that courtyard would be finished in 2012.  But our crew is not large, and projects in our community are legion.  So unfortunately, beyond all this foundation work, completion won't happen until 2013.  Still, plenty more work to accomplish this year at Casa Torrente De Agua.  

In this final photo, you can see the upper planter box structure completed.  That flat concrete along the drive will be broken up and put in the bottom of that box for drainage, and it will be filled close to the top with soil.  Then we'll plant bamboo.  The driveway along the "J Wall" will be finished with blok zacate from driveway below which is being raised up, and which will be finished in gravel. 

The bamboo will grow quickly in this tropical climate; this is after all a tropical jungle.  And in about a year, that whole stair will be obsured by bamboo.  The box will contain the tendency of the bamboo to take up space, but we'll have some shoots over time to replant elsewhere. 

So like the extension of the upper retaining wall in a prior post, this is one more step towards completion.

Upper Retaining Wall Drain System

Pipe just to end of upper wall, looking downhill

As part of extending and making the Upper Retaining Wall higher; our experience after some years now at Alazan was that we needed to include a drain system in the wall design. 

The crew dug out behind the upper wall and layed in a system composed of landscape fabric, gravel, PVC pipe.  They manually drilled holes into the topside of the pipe so that water could percolate into it and be carried away. 

This is a low flow system, so water never really gets going in a rush; but rather the hydrostatic pressure behind the retaining wall never builds up - and thus this serves to relieve pressure and make the entire system safer.

Upper wall, house foundation joined

These fist two photos show the pipe terminating at the end of the wall syatem, and then the 90 degree bend to route it downhill and past the lower corner posts of the house. 

It is, admittedly, hard to discern the height off the ground of that wall whose block is slightly exposed near the center right side of the second photo.  But when I stand on the ground at that point, it is about chest high.  The drop to the corner post at the bottom (top right of photo) is about 1.5 stories of drop. 

Perf pipe end

This third photo shows the pipe with all the holes
our crew drilled to make it from a solid pipe to a perf pipe.  Unlike commercial perf pipe, the holes are only on the top half of the pipe.  And top half determined after it was layed in place. 

You can see a piece of PVC elbow sitting there wiating to be installed. 

Perf pipe under gravael

 In this fourth photo, you can see the trench behind the upper wall, with landscape fabric and gravel.  The perf pipe is buried within that gravel. 

At end, this wall was raised one full block higher making a more appropriate transisiton from ground level into the wall.  What we are seeking to avoid with these changes is any water at all that might come downhill during heavy rains from flowing OVER the wall, but rather have that carried away by the pipe. 

Drain extended downhill

In this final photo, you can see the pipe (non perf at this point) running downhill past the end of the house.  This year for rainy season, water will now be safely carried away. 








Thanks for reading our blog!

Jim and Dick

Upper Retaining Wall Completed



Initial work at existing height

Hi again.

In this post, I'm showing the completion of the Upper retaining wall.  This wall was the first part of construction back in 2008 when this whole project started. 

In previous posts, I noted that this wall didn't extend across the entire side of the house.  In this project, we were looking for an invisible benefit; a structural improvement that would tie together the house foundation wall and the upper retaining wall.  


Ended, final height started

The other thing this part of the project does is set the path in place for a walkway.  Right now it is a walkway to nowhere - a concept so popular in Milwaukee with the Hoan "Bridge to nowhere". 

In our case, that corner of concrete block on the right side at floor level will be the starting point for a new deck (but of steel and fibrolet and tile) across that entire side of the house.  That deck will be a lounging location, but serve as an alternate pathway to connect to the lower veranda off the two bedrooms on this level.  And we'll gain the benefit of being able to put a ladder there to wash windows, paint, and otherwise service that side of the house.



Final height almost done

 In this photo you can see that upper retaining wall raised one block higher.  If you look closely, it is not quite finished, but well along to completion. 

Done and cleaned up

This photo shows the wall finished, and the area generally cleaned up.  When the rest of the courtyard is done, the concrete floor up to the short curb and gravel line will be tiled.  On top of the concrete block wall will be steel and fibrolit that will enclose this space; and some form of open grill will be windows in that wall.

Then we we finally landscape this hillside to complete the whole planing area between our house, and our neighbors, that will be visible thorugh these "windows". 

This will have the effect of a new room, but with and open to sky ceiling. 


Upper Retaining Wall Extension - Laying Block

This post reflects what we refer to as the UPPER WALL EXTENSION.  This went part way across the back (in future what we will call left side) of the house.  In rains, mud would splash over the wall and onto the house.  Plus it posed a hazard.

So the project was to extend this wall across the entire side of the house, matching the foundation wall which supports the only part of the house making direct ground contact. 

That sort of curb you see in the middle will be permanent since just past it, water and electric conduits take those utilities into the house. 

You can see the new footings going back to the end.

This photo shows block being layed, and crossing over much of the end.  The new footing connects to the foundation wall, making a closed box.  This makes the entire box structure a single unit, combining the upper retaining wall with the foundation.

We added perf pipe then on the uphill side of that wall, so that water coming down the hill will fall into that pipe, protected by landscape fabric and surrounded by gravel. 

This then drains any excess water past the house and downhill below the house. 

You can see i this photo the wall extended.  In future photos you'll see that end closed and squared, and the wall raised up one block. 

Thanks for reading our blog

Dick and Jim

Upper Retaining Wall Extension - Layout and Dig

Placement of this post may seem odd, but we're representing the wall project from downhill to uphill. 

In this phoot you can see the original upper retaining wall.  All the lower wall structures intersect this wall at three points.  Behind the cameraman and uphill about 3x taller than the house the wall continues along the driveway. 

All of this hold earth above the house, and keeps it more secure from slides. 

The extension of this wall will go past the end of the house in this photo by about 1.5 meters. 

Standing back a little, you can see how this relates to the entry door to the bedroom and laundry level. 

This photo shows prep work on the water supply and electric coming into this house.  It is dropped below the low ground level "wall".  That little step will remain permanently.  We are not going to attempt to level it to the existing concrete.  Rather, it will hold back a small gravel surface that will allow rain water to perk into the earth.  In future photos you'll see that we've arranged for that section to drain, so we've no concerns about water in it.  But the walking surface to the right will just be gravel with cement stepping stones. 

Here you can see most of the excavating done to extend the wall past the house. 

This better photo shows Erazmo and Emelio digging that area out, and carting some of the soil away. 

The Wall - Phase 2 Completed (almost)

Here is the first view of the new "J wall" completed.  At this point, it is finished except for applying stucco to the exterior, and filling it with good soil. 

In this photo you can see the left roof support, plus the center ridge support.  That left support will be cut down to a finished level as part of the roof project to come.  Ultimately there will be a wall on top of these walls (steel and fibrolet) with an entry door in that section on the right side of this photot.

This is viewing the "J Wall" from ninety degrees around the compass from the photo above.  You can see how this wall interesects the original upper retaining wall. 

The cut to the right, most of the way up still needs to be built, and the lower face of the inside planter needs to be done yet.  We'll work out those details when I return in May. 

All of the concrete pavement at an angle to the right of the wall needs to be removed. 

You can see that "J wall" stepping uphill in this photo. 

And here you can see nearly all of that wall finished.  There will be some additional block needed as we finish the upper planter box, but those are details we'll work out in May.  This does a great job though of showing the new "inside" space of this addition.  The other part that this begins to reveal is how much INTO the mountain this house is. 

In a future project, a year or two from now. we'll build a gabian box wall at the lower downhill footings to add more stability to the earth and soil there; and as part of the bodega level buildout to a usable workshop and 1/2 bath.  Another future project we have in mind is "the back deck". 

Thanks for reading this far...  More to come....

Jim and Dick

The Wall - Phase 2 Laying Block

This post shows the block being laid for the curved part of the J wall.  You can see Marlon not only cutting block into short pieces, but leveling as he goes.  The tall sticks of vertical rebar will provide strength for when this area is filled with dirt.

Looking from the other way, you can see Marlon continuing to lay block while Alvarro drills drain holes so that this section discharges water in future rains.  All of this is essential to creating a durable wall.  As you view this, you can all see how they are working up the hill as they go.

Alvarro and Marlon still working on that curved part, but here it is nearly at full height.  You can see the precision they achieved in their slow and deliberate work.  The inside will be filled with good planting soil near the top of the wall. 

Viewed from 90 degrees around them, you can see the outside developing here. 

As they work up to join the original upper retaining wall which you can see on the right side of this photo, you can see Marlon creating steps.  The cut in the concrete below where Marlon is laying block is the section that will form the upper planter box.  They have a good amount of block to lay to form that upper box, which will be considerably taller than the lower one.  We envision planting bamboo in the upper box, which will screen and provide a green foreground to what will be a tall wall behind it. 

  

This shows Marlon working up; actually at a point in block laying prior to the photo above.  He is working over those pipes which carry water and potentially electric downhill for a second structure.







Thanks again for reading!

Dick and Jim