Assessment
Drainage and an engineering assessment
A wall holds soil and the water in that soil. If the bid never mentions either one, it is not a replacement plan.
This is an independent referral guide. It connects homeowners with independent providers and may receive compensation. It is not a licensed contractor and it does not do the work.
Water has to leave
Escondido yards step up and down. Winter rain and dry season irrigation both load the soil behind a wall. A solid face with no drain forces that water to push. Replacement plans usually include free draining rock, a perforated pipe, and an outlet that does not dump onto a neighbor's pad or a city sidewalk.
The city's retaining wall guideline also talks about slopes behind a wall and about keeping other loads back from the top. A sloping bank is common on Escondido lots. Do not let anyone tell you a short looking wall is automatically simple because part of it is buried.
- Where the water daylights, in a storm and during irrigation
- Whether a driveway, fence, or footing sits close to the top
- Whether the ground falls away at the toe of the wall
- Who will sign the design if the city asks for an engineered wall
Assessment before demolition
On a wall that is already moving, demolition is not the first safe step. Keep weight off the top. Keep children, cars, and stored materials out of the fall line. A qualified person should decide whether the wall can be approached. This guide will not give you a sequence for taking a dangerous wall apart.
Read the local guide for the permit measurement and the historic district caution.
Keep reading
Questions on this service
Will this site tell me if my wall is safe?
No. If the wall is leaning, bulging, or the soil above it is opening up, stay clear and get a qualified assessment. That may include a licensed engineer. This website is not that assessment.
Does every wall need an engineer?
Not every garden edge does. Taller walls, slopes, and anything carrying a driveway, fence, or building often do. The city guideline is the place to confirm, not a guess from a neighborhood name.
Describe the wall when you are ready
Include whether it is moving and what sits on top. Call, text, or open a prefilled text from the estimate form.