We Build, Repair, and Replace Retaining Walls
We are your DeBary FL retaining wall specialists!
Retaining walls are an excellent addition to any DeBary landscape, especially if you’re dealing with a slope that limits your usable outdoor space. By building a retaining wall, you can transform sloped areas into functional, level surfaces that open up possibilities for beautiful landscape beds, new backyard patios, outdoor kitchens, or even parking areas. Our retaining walls are designed to hold back soil and prevent erosion, giving you new, stable areas that can be landscaped in a variety of ways. We work with a range of materials, including natural stone, brick, block, boulders, and even treated wood, to create a wall that enhances your property’s appeal.
Why Add a Retaining Wall to Your DeBary Property?
For residents in DeBary's sought-after neighborhoods like Riviera Bella, Glen Abbey, Debary Plantation, Saxon Woods, and the Estates at Debary Golf & Country Club, retaining walls offer both practical and aesthetic benefits. Here are some of the reasons why clients want to build a retaining wall for their DeBary home:
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- Prevent Soil Erosion – Retaining walls can secure sloped areas, keeping soil and landscaping in place.
- Create Boundaries – Define your property with a retaining wall that separates it from neighboring lots, enhancing both privacy and curb appeal.
- Border Driveways – Add a touch of elegance and stability by bordering driveways with a strong, beautiful retaining wall.
- Frame In-Ground Pools – Retaining walls can surround in-ground pools, adding visual appeal and creating a more secluded, intimate feel or to support the surrounding soil.
- Raised Garden Beds – Retaining walls allow for raised garden beds, providing perfect spots for plants, flowers, or shrubs.
Whether you’re looking to build a new retaining wall or need repairs on an existing one, Tree Of Life Landscape & Design brings expertise and quality craftsmanship to every project in DeBary. Let us help you reclaim and beautify your outdoor space with a custom retaining wall designed for both function and beauty. Contact us to schedule your consultation today.
Tree Of Life Landscape & Design is a landscaping contractor serving DeBary, in Central Florida. We specialize in designing and building functional segmental retaining walls for property owners looking to landscape a naturally sloped property. From a 20′ foot long curved block retaining wall to hold back earth around the front garden beds of your home to larger, more complicated, retaining walls for a terraced property. The team at Tree Of Life Landscape & Design will be able to provide you with a retaining wall solution that will benefit your specific property.
Building New Retaining Walls In DeBary Florida
We specialize in the construction of new segmented retaining walls. The benefits to segmented retaining walls are many. Segmented retaining walls are aesthetically pleasing, they offer design flexibility, they are economical, easier to install, and durable.
They are also pre-engineered, meaning the wall can be built to your project specifications without having to have an architect or engineer design the wall itself. We can build the wall to the engineering specifications and have a qualified engineer sign off on the project if the height or size of the wall requires it.
Retaining Walls & Building Permits in DeBary Florida
In most of Volusia County (your municipality could be different) retaining walls that are under 3 feet in height generally do not require permits or design plans. There are some specifics that may or may not apply to your situation. If retaining walls are 3 feet in height or over than a permit is generally required. Any retaining walls over 6 feet in height will require a permit and additionally an engineered design to ensure the structure is sound. This information does not account for any covenants that might be on your property.
When we view your property we'll be able to let you know any specific building codes that might apply to your circumstance depending on the height/length of your wall and what it's specifically being installed for and whatever surcharges (weight) might be applied to the soil above and behind the wall.
Proper Drainage For Retaining Walls
We are often contacted by potential customers who have an existing retaining wall that has failed, it's either falling down, bulging, or collapsing. One of the most common reasons for retaining wall failure is that the original wall was built with poor drainage in place.
Retaining walls are designed to hold back earth from erosion. This also makes them excellent at holding back water too. The water that builds up behind a retaining wall is referred to in the industry as "hydrostatic pressure" and the external force of the soil or fill held behind your retaining wall coupled with the weight of the water held behind it is often enough to seriously compromise the integrity of your wall which can lead to failures such as bulging and even a total collapse.
Well-built retaining walls must incorporate good drainage if it's going to last for many years. Depending on the type of material being used to build your retaining wall there are a variety of ways to integrate sufficient drainage such as lateral drains, french drains, weeping drains, blanket drains and also the use of very granular soil or fill behind the wall can also work to disperse rather than hold the water.
Understanding Retaining Wall Surcharges
A "surcharge" when it comes to a retaining wall is the weight on top of or behind the wall. For example, if you're building a retaining wall to create a new parking area for a boat or an RV we need to consider the weight of the boat or RV and it's impact on the retaining wall.
If your wall is going to have a surcharge it must be built with this in mind if it's going to last. This would also include tiered retaining walls or retaining walls with a fence on top or any other weight other than the earth it's holding back.
Geo-grid is often used to provide extra tensile strength to each course of your retaining wall so it's anchored to the ground behind it. Proper use of geo-grid will ensure that your retaining wall will be built to last and won't collapse or buckle under the excess weight.
Failure to properly stabilize retaining walls is another very common failure.
What Materials Do We Use For Retaining Walls?
There are many different materials to build your retaining wall out of. Below are some of the more popular materials in our area because of their availability.
- Block retaining walls
- Natural stone retaining walls
- Large boulder retaining walls
How Our Retaining Wall Construction Process Works
When building a retaining wall on your property that is designed to hold back soil and earth from erosion there is very little margin for error so when required we work directly with engineers if your wall is over 6 feet in height. There are many pre-engineered systems we can use as well that can eliminate the need for detailed building plans.
- We start with our initial consultation.
- We determine how many feet of retaining wall you need.
- We determine the height of the wall and if a building permit or engineer will be required.
- We take into account any surcharges (weight) the wall might be exposed to.
- We consult with you on the materials you'd like your retaining built with.
- We'll provide you with an accurate written estimate for the work.
The amount of work required to build a retaining wall can vary widely from project to project. The slope of your property, the amount of earth your retaining wall must hold back and the overall accessibility of your property will all contribute to the final cost. We'll be able to offer you an accurate estimate only after a site visit.
Retaining Wall Repair Or Replacement
We specialize in rebuilding retaining walls that have failed and/or collapsed.
Retaining Wall Repairs DeBary, Florida
It's pretty common for us to get called out to repair an existing retaining wall that has collapsed or failed in some way. This could be an old wood retaining wall that is rotting away or a block wall that is bulging or on the verge of collapse if it has not collapsed already.
Typically we don't recommend "repairing" retaining walls. The wall has failed for a reason and that reason is typically poor construction or a poor choice of materials. When a wall has failed we will usually recommend tearing the wall out and replacing it. This would include demolition of the old wall, re-excavating the area to allow for proper base materials, installation of proper drainage, and proper backfill. Building it right is the more cost effective option in most situations.
Rebuilding Failed Retaining Walls In DeBary, Florida
If your existing retaining wall has failed and needs to be replaced it's usually more cost effective to demolish the old wall, remove the materials, re-excavate the site, install a proper base, geo-grid if necessary, install drainage, and build the retaining wall properly.
We specialize in rebuilding retaining walls that have failed and would be happy to provide you with a consultation if you have a wall that you believe needs to be replaced.
What Our Customers Say...
I hired Tree of Life to clear out some old flower beds in the front of the house followed by design and installation of a "new look". I had some very specific needs related to long term maintenance and upkeep which Michael and his team were very responsive to. Their work included adjustments to the irrigation system to insure the plants had adequate water. The design is excellent and quality of work outstanding. I would absolutely recommend this company to anyone looking for high-quality landscaping work to be done.
Michael and his Team did an awesome job. Professional, attention to detail and affordable! A great experience
Tree of Life Landscape and Design exceeded my expectations with their exceptional landscaping services for the front of my house. Their attention to detail, professionalism, and commitment to customer satisfaction truly stood out throughout the entire process. From the initial consultation to the completion of the project, Tree of Life Landscape and Design demonstrated great customer service, integrity, and professionalism. They took the time to understand my vision and goals for the front of my house, offering valuable insights and recommendations based on their expertise. The team at Tree of Life Landscape and Design tackled the project with great precision and care. They removed the Shillings on both sides of the sidewalk and strategically used the best ones to fill in the gaps in the hedgerow along the front of the house. This attention to detail created a cohesive and visually appealing landscape. In addition to removing unwanted plants and disposing of all debris, Tree of Life Landscape and Design installed black metal edging to conform to the new bed shape. This added structure and definition to the landscape design, enhancing its overall aesthetic. The selection of plants was thoughtfully chosen to complement the architecture of my home. They planted 6 Miami Supreme Gardenias, with 3 in front of each window, adding a touch of elegance and fragrance to the front yard. The placement of 2 Robelini Palms, with a triple trunk in the center of the right-hand bed and a double trunk in front of the bathroom window, added a symmetrical and balanced look. To complete the transformation, Tree of Life Landscape and Design installed white marble chips in the beds, creating a clean and polished appearance. The use of flood and up lights to illuminate the front of my house as nighttime approaches added a captivating and welcoming ambiance. Throughout the entire process, Tree of Life Landscape and Design demonstrated professionalism, reliability, and a commitment to delivering a high-quality result. Their attention to detail and dedication to customer satisfaction truly set them apart. I highly recommend Tree of Life Landscape and Design for any landscaping needs. Their expertise, integrity, and exceptional customer service make them a top choice for creating beautiful and functional outdoor spaces. Thank you, Tree of Life Landscape and Design, for transforming the front of my house into a stunning landscape that I can enjoy for years to come!"
When we bought this house we inherited 4 Koi fish ponds that wrapped the entire back of the house After removing the fish (to Koi fish rescue team) and filling the ponds with dirt in an attempt to do this work ourselves We have been, for the last 3 years, looking at 4 giant dirt pits filled with weeds and snakes and other critters making habitat right up against our house. It was time to call the professionals and Michael and his crew are the definition of professionals They have exceeded our expectations & where we once did not even want to go out our back door into this monstrosity, we now can't stop looking at our beautiful stone patios! From the first day Michael came to the house for the initial estimate his vibe exudes a calm and zen like presence with a calculated thoughtfulness about the job at hand. His price was very fair and the amount of manual labor this took to pull off was stunning and I cannot even believe they finished this in less than 3 days! Impeccable! We will definitely be hiring Tree of Life again for more projects!
This is my second experience with Tree of Life Landscape and Design and as before their work never disappoints. Michael and his crew removed and replaced a 30 year old weather and insect damaged wooden retaining wall and pathway with a beautiful architectural block and cap design and also reinforced the pavers that surround the landscaping in the back yard. The cost was reasonable and the job was completed in the specified time. Michael was easy to work with and was always available to answer our questions. I highly recommend Tree of Life Landscape and Design for any outdoor beautification projects.
Michael is an extremely talented and honest landscaper who loves what he does and treats his clients with respect. My wife and I are very happy with the quality and price of his work. We have used his services twice and will use him again if needed.
We had Tree of Life Lanscape and Design install a retaining wall around and they did a fantastic job and looks amazing. We would recommend them to anyone looking for work to be done.
The retaining wall project went very smooth. I had a 40' two-tiered wall installed. The workmanship was great and the workers were friendly and helpful.
