Concrete retaining walls in Mesa AZ - built to drain and stand on firm ground
A slope sliding toward your patio, or an old wall that leans? We build concrete retaining walls that hold the ground and let water out.
- Licensed and fully insured.
- Free on-site estimates.
- Replies within 1 business day.
What does a concrete retaining wall do for a sloped yard?
A concrete retaining wall holds back soil where your yard changes height. In Mesa, AZ, we build concrete retaining walls that stand on a footing, a wide concrete base poured first. The footing keeps the wall from tipping or sliding as the soil pushes sideways, and rebar, steel bars standing upright inside the wall, takes that push.
Most people call us for one of three reasons. A slope is creeping onto a patio or driveway, an old wall has started to lean, or they want flat ground where the yard falls away. The price moves with the wall's length and height, how hard the digging is, how much drainage it needs and whether an old wall has to come out first. The schedule turns on the weather and on what we find once the ground is open. Your written estimate spells out the prep, the pour and any removal, so you can see what the price covers.
How can you tell a slope or old wall needs attention?
An old wall leaning out
If the top of a wall has tipped forward or a gap is opening behind it, the soil is winning. That usually happens because water has nowhere to go or the footing has shifted. A leaning wall rarely straightens back up, and the longer you wait, the more dirt comes down with it when it goes.
Dirt washing onto your patio
Mud on the patio or driveway after every storm means the slope above it is moving a little at a time. Left alone, it can wash out under the edge of the slab and leave you with a cracked, sinking patio on top of the slope problem.
Wet stains on the wall
Damp patches, a white crust or water seeping through cracks after rain mean water is sitting behind the wall instead of draining out. That water adds pressure every time it rains, and fixing the drainage now costs less than rebuilding a wall that has started to move.
How we build a concrete retaining wall
I plan how water gets out from behind the wall before I plan the wall itself, because trapped water is usually what makes a wall lean. Then we dig for the footing and I check the ground under it, since a wall is only as steady as what it stands on. We only pour on firm, undisturbed soil or on fill we've packed down tight. Our crew sets the steel, builds the forms, pours the footing and the wall and finishes the face, and then the drains and the backfill go in. If the budget gets tight, I'd rather keep the drain and the footing and go plainer on the face. You can refinish a face later, but you can't fix a footing without tearing the wall out.
A wall usually changes the ground around it, so it often comes with other work. Cutting into a slope can leave a level pad that's ready for concrete floor installation for a shed or a workshop. A wall that holds up the yard beside a pool is often built along with a new concrete pool deck, so we can set the grades for both at once.
Poured concrete wall
Concrete goes into forms around the steel, on a footing poured first, and this suits taller walls and slopes that carry real weight. The face comes out smooth and can be left plain or finished later.
Reinforced block wall
This is concrete block with steel run up through the cores and filled solid, on a poured footing. It suits a wall you want to match an existing block fence or cover with stucco, and it works well where a big form is hard to set.
Get a free written estimate for your retaining wall
Send the form and we'll reply within one business day to set a time. I'll come out, look at the slope and the soil, and give you a free written estimate with no obligation.
Call (480) 645-9450What happens after you call about a retaining wall?
Here's how a retaining wall job runs with us, from your first call to the walk-through at the end.
Call or send the form
You call (480) 645-9450 or send the form, and I set up a time to come out. On that visit I look at the site and hear what you want the yard to do.
Get your written estimate
I check where water runs and what the ground looks like, and then I write up the estimate. It spells out the prep, the pour and any removal of an old wall, so you can see what each part of the price covers.
We build, then walk it
Once you're ready, we schedule around the weather, and our crew forms, pours and finishes the wall while I check in on site. When it's done, I walk the finished wall with you, drains and all.
Why Mesa homeowners call Cornerstone Mesa Concrete for retaining walls
If a slope is moving or you want a yard you can actually use, send us the details and I'll come out and take a look.
I write your estimate myself
I come out myself to look at the slope and write your estimate, and I check in on site while our crew does the forming, pouring and finishing. The person who priced your wall is the one making sure it gets built that way.
Building in Mesa since 2021
I started this business here in 2021 after years on crews under a boss who made us tear out anything that wasn't right. I still hold our walls to that standard, because tearing out concrete costs everyone.
Licensed and fully insured
That's worth asking any contractor about before they start digging in your yard. A retaining wall means deep digging and heavy work close to your house.
Retaining walls and the ground under them in Mesa
Monsoon storms are what test a retaining wall here, because a summer downpour soaks the ground behind it and that water has to go somewhere. On every wall we build in Mesa, I look at where your yard and the lots around it send runoff before I settle on the drains.
Caliche is the other thing we plan around. It's soil cemented together by calcium carbonate, common across southern Arizona, and it can turn up as scattered lumps or as a solid layer anywhere from fairly loose to rock-hard. Yards with caliche can cost more to dig, and we won't know how much is down there until the footing trench is open. I'll tell you at the estimate what the digging could involve. We're based in Mesa and take jobs across the cities around it, and we dig footings the same careful way on walls in Gilbert and Tempe.
Questions about retaining walls in Mesa
How much does a concrete retaining wall cost in Mesa, AZ?
A poured concrete retaining wall 3 to 6 feet tall usually costs about $90 to $300 per linear foot in the Phoenix area. That's the market's range, not a quote from us. Walls closer to 6 feet tall cost more per foot than the common 3-foot wall, and hard digging and extra drainage push the number up too. Your written estimate shows what your wall's price covers.
What is the best way to keep water from building up behind a retaining wall?
Every retaining wall needs a planned way out for water, usually drains through the wall. Where heavy, long rains are expected, a continuous drain can run along the back of the wall as well. Our summer storms fit that description, so I'll usually recommend both, and your estimate will show how your wall drains.
Could the soil in my yard cause problems for a retaining wall?
It can, because problem soils turn up all over Arizona, including expansive soil that swells when it's wet. One block wall installation guide lists organic and expansive soils as unsuitable ground for segmental block walls. The surest way to know what you have is a geotechnical firm that takes soil borings and tests how much the soil swells. If what I see at the estimate makes me wonder, I'll tell you, and you can decide whether a test is worth it.
What is the best type of retaining wall for a sloped yard?
A poured or steel-reinforced block wall on a concrete footing suits most yards with a real slope. Segmental block walls, the stacked interlocking kind, can work when the system is rated for your site. They come as plain stacked walls or with reinforcing laid back into the soil, and how much each can hold varies by system. Ask how the block maker rates its system for your soil, and follow that.
How long does it take before soil can go behind a new retaining wall?
Soil shouldn't be packed behind a new wall until the wall has gained enough strength or is braced, so backfilling waits on the concrete, not the calendar. How long that takes depends on the weather and the wall, so I'll tell you on site when it's ready rather than promise a day up front.
Will my new concrete retaining wall crack?
Most concrete walls show a few fine cracks over time, and a fine crack in a wall that's still straight usually isn't a problem. The steel inside holds those cracks tight. On a long wall we put in control joints, planned lines that give the wall a place to crack where we chose. Cracks that open up as a wall leans are a different matter, because they point to a drainage or footing problem.
Related concrete work around a new wall
- Concrete floor installation
Leveling a slope often frees up flat ground, and a poured floor turns that space into a shed base, workshop pad or storage area you can actually use.
- Concrete pool decks
If your wall holds up the ground around a pool, a deck built at the same time keeps water running away from the pool and the wall.
Service areas for retaining walls around Mesa
Cornerstone Mesa Concrete is based in Mesa, Arizona. The 12 cities below each have their own page, including Chandler and Scottsdale, and we take jobs in other cities around Mesa as well.
Mesa, AZ
Plan your retaining wall with us
Have the rough length and height of the wall in mind when you call (480) 645-9450 or send the form, because those two numbers drive most of the price.