Retaining Walls: Add Landscape Beauty & Stormwater Management
So, you’re ready to redesign your backyard and outdoor living space. You have visions of a fire pit, maybe a pool, pergola, or outdoor kitchen. Everything is perfect, but you may have forgotten one thing.
Retaining walls. These structures are essential for many reasons, keeping your yard and hardscaping intact and protected from stormwater and shifting soil. But retaining walls don’t have to be unsightly.
A company like Outdoor Innovations can integrate your retaining walls into the design of your outdoor living space, creating a seamless look for your entire backyard.
Let’s take a look at retaining walls and why you need them.
Importance of Retaining Walls
Depending on where you live and the surrounding landscape, it is possible that you will need retaining walls when hardscaping your yard.
Retaining walls help maintain the integrity of your yard, allow for proper drainage and water management, and keep soil from shifting. They can also provide level areas for yard space, pools, and other entertaining areas.
However, there is a science to building retaining walls. If they’re not properly installed, they can bow or burst, ruining your entire landscaping and requiring very costly repairs.
Other Structural Purposes of Retaining Walls
Besides helping rainwater drain properly, there are plenty of other reasons to include retaining walls in your hardscaping or landscaping.
They can help enhance your space in many ways, including:
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Separate outdoor living space areas
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Create an area for a swimming pool
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Add in sitting walls and pillars
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Multi-tiered landscape areas
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Elevate special features
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Build stairs and garden cascades
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And more!
As you can see, there are many reasons to include retaining walls in your backyard design.
With a company like Outdoor Innovations, we can help you achieve the look you’re going for while maintaining structural integrity.
Materials for Retaining Walls
Your vision of your backyard may be very specific, and choosing the right materials for your retaining walls can help bring that vision to life.
You can use various materials for your retaining walls, depending on the colors and textures you want for your outdoor living space.
Some natural and pre-fabricated options include:
These materials come in many color options to find the ideal material for your retaining walls and outdoor space.
More Landscaping Solutions for Stormwater Management
There are other aspects of managing rainwater than just retaining walls. Stormwater management is essential to keeping your outdoor living space structurally sound. However, stormwater management doesn’t have to be unsightly.
One such way to manage stormwater is through a rain garden. These catch snowmelt and rainwater runoff from hard surfaces. Planted in a low area, the water will slowly collect and soak into the ground, preventing flooding.
Another way to manage stormwater is through a dry well containment system. These systems are buried under your property to collect and guide runoff back into the ground.
Additionally, you can incorporate a reuse system, which collects water instead of letting it soak into the ground, which can be used in irrigation efforts for your yard!
Reduce Flooding & Corrosion With Retaining Walls by Outdoor Innovations
After spending money to construct the backyard of your dreams, the last thing you want is to have it crumble under excessive rainwater.
The experts at Outdoor Innovations are ready to help you design the most efficient and effective solutions for managing stormwater and runoff. We can incorporate these solutions into your design, turning an essential function into a beautiful design.
Need some inspiration? Check out our gallery of previous work that includes retaining walls.
For more information about our services, give us a call at 651-983-1976 or send us a message online. We are ready to transform your backyard into a paradise.