Concrete retaining walls in Orem UT - a wall that drains well and holds your yard
Dirt washing down your slope or an old wall starting to lean? We build a concrete wall with a drain behind it so it holds.
- Licensed and insured.
- Free estimates at your property.
- We reply within 1 business day.
What goes into a concrete retaining wall in Orem?
A concrete retaining wall holds back the soil on a slope. The walls we build in Orem stand on a footing, which is the wide concrete base under the wall. They have rebar, steel bars set in the concrete to carry the soil's push, and a drain behind them so water can't build up against the wall.
Most calls start with dirt washing onto a patio, an old wall starting to lean, or a hill where you'd like a flat yard. Height alone doesn't tell me how to build your wall, because the footing, the steel and the drain all depend on the soil and on what will sit above it later, so let us know early if a driveway or new fill is coming near the wall. The price moves with how tall and long the wall is, how hard the site is to dig and reach, and how much drainage it needs, and the schedule turns on the weather and on whether the city wants to review plans. We check with the city before we put a date on the calendar, and my estimate gives you the figure for your wall.
Is a concrete retaining wall right for your yard?
Soil washing onto your patio
When rain keeps carrying dirt onto a patio or walk, a wall holds the slope where it belongs.
An old wall leaning out
A wall that tips, cracks or bulges is usually losing to water or soft ground behind it.
Wanting flat yard space
Cutting a slope back and holding it with concrete turns a hill into usable lawn, garden or patio.
A driveway cut into grade
When a driveway sits lower than the yard beside it, a wall keeps that edge from slumping in.
How we build a concrete retaining wall
We start by digging down to firm soil for the footing and packing anything loose before we set forms, because the footing is what the whole wall rests on. We tie the rebar for the footing and the wall, pour the footing, then form and pour the wall on top of it. What's behind a wall to carry water away matters as much as the concrete, so our estimate spells out the drain piece by piece and you can compare it line for line with other bids. General drainage guidance for these walls calls for clean crushed stone, filter fabric, a perforated drain pipe and a clear outlet or weep holes, which are small openings through the wall that let water out, and that's a fair list to hold every bid to. Once the concrete has cured, meaning it's had its wait to gain strength, we backfill behind the wall and clean up.
A wall often makes room for something else. If it levels a sloped backyard for a pool, we can pour the concrete pool deck on the flat ground it creates and slope that deck away from the wall, and if it cuts into a hillside for a shop or storage building, we can handle the concrete floor installation at the same time. Where you need to get from the upper yard to the lower one, concrete steps can go in with the wall.
Poured concrete wall
A poured wall with a footing and steel inside suits yards where the wall holds back a lot of soil or has little room, like beside a driveway or close to the house. It takes the most planning, so it's the one where the footing and drain design matter most.
Segmental block wall
Segmental walls are built from manufactured concrete units stacked dry without mortar, and they hold soil mainly by their own weight. They can suit gentler slopes and curving garden beds, and I'll tell you on site which kind fits your yard.
What happens when you call about a retaining wall in Orem?
Call us or send the form
Reach us at (385) 476-8003 or through the form on this page, and we'll set a time for me to come out. If the wall is part of a bigger project, mention that now.
I come out and look
I look at the slope, where the water runs and what's above and below it, and I ask what you plan to do with the space. Your estimate lists the drain and the rest of the wall separately and gives you the price for your wall.
We check with the city first
In Orem, work past minor jobs that needs a permit also needs plans and review, which takes longer, so we build that time into the plan. Then we set a date that suits the weather and your household.
We build it and walk it
Our crew digs, forms and pours, and we let the concrete cure before soil goes back behind the wall. When it's done, we walk the finished wall with you before we leave.
Where your retaining wall money should go
Into the footing, the ground and the drain.
The base is usually the first thing cut from a bid, because nobody sees the footing or the packed ground once the soil goes back. Washington State highway guidance puts rigid concrete walls among the least forgiving of sinking ground and holds their total settling to about an inch or less, so the ground under the footing has to stay firm.
If the budget is tight, I'd rather keep the full drain and a solid footing and leave the face plain. A stain can often go on later, but a footing can't be fixed without taking the wall down.
Examples of concrete work
Look through these examples of concrete work, from walls and steps to driveways and patios, to get a feel for the shapes and finishes.
Get a free estimate for your retaining wall
Tell us the wall's height and length, add photos of the slope and mention any driveway planned near it. We reply within one business day, and I come out for a free estimate with no obligation.
Why Orem homeowners call Professional Orem Concrete Construction for retaining walls
The owner prices and builds it
I come out to look at your slope and give the estimate, and I'm on site with our crew when we build the wall. The person who heard your plans for the yard is the one setting the footing.
Started out pouring footings
I spent my first years in concrete pouring footings and foundations on new construction, and we've been in business since 2023. A retaining wall is mostly footing and steel you never see, and that's the work I learned first.
We're licensed and insured
Professional Orem Concrete Construction is licensed and insured. A wall that holds soil beside your house, or along your neighbor's yard, is work you want covered.
Planned for Orem winters
Orem rates its weathering as severe and puts its frost line, the depth the ground can freeze to, at 30 inches, so freezing and thawing figure into every wall we plan here. When you're ready, call (385) 476-8003 or send the form on this page.
Common retaining wall questions
How much does a concrete retaining wall cost in Orem?
A poured concrete retaining wall about 3 feet high usually costs about $37 to $40 per square foot in Orem, installed with concrete and materials. That's the going rate for a plain wall, not our price, and removing an old wall, terraces, curves, extra height, a stamped or stained face and new landscaping all come on top. My estimate gives you the figure for your own wall.
Do I need a permit for a retaining wall in Orem?
You need a building permit from the City of Orem if the wall is 4 feet or taller, measured from the bottom of the footing, and the city lists shorter walls as needing none. Because the footing sits below ground, a wall that looks shorter than 4 feet from the yard can still cross that line, so I measure it the city's way when I come out.
What causes a concrete retaining wall to fail?
Poor drainage is by far the most common reason walls that hold back earth perform poorly, and left alone those problems can progress to failure. Water that can't get out builds up behind the wall and pushes on it, and in a cold snap it freezes there too. A wall that's started to lean or bulge is usually telling you water is trapped behind it.
How do I take care of a concrete retaining wall?
After a heavy rain, check that water is coming out of the outlet pipe or weep holes, because that means the drain is doing its job. Keep leaves, mulch and soil cleared from the base of the wall and point downspouts away from it. Over time, watch for new staining, cracking, leaning or soft ground near the wall, and give us a call if you see any of it.
How long does it take to build a retaining wall in Orem?
Most of the calendar goes to the steps around the pour rather than the pour itself. The concrete has to cure before soil goes back behind the wall, and a wall tall enough to need a permit also waits on the city's plan review, so I'll lay out a realistic schedule with your estimate.
Can I put a fence on top of a retaining wall in Orem?
You can plan one, but in Orem a fence that includes a retaining wall goes through the city's building permit portal, unlike most fence permits. Tell me about the fence when I come out, because posts set on top of a wall change how the top of the wall gets built.
Got a slope that needs holding back?
Ask for an estimate and I'll come out, look at the slope and the water, and price your wall at your property.
Work that often goes with a wall
Concrete retaining walls in Orem and nearby cities
Past the height rule in the questions above, the city your house sits in has the say, so a wall just over the line from Orem goes by that city's rules. We check with the right city before we schedule, and when a permit is needed we take care of the paperwork and the inspections.
Many of the walls we're asked about sit on sloped lots where the yard was graded long ago and the soil has had years to move. The Utah Geologic Hazards Portal shows property owners the type, location and relative susceptibility of geologic hazards, though most are mapped only in study areas, so a blank spot on the map may still have one. That's why I don't price a wall from a map alone, and I dig in to see what the footing will really sit on, the same way we do on hillside jobs in Cedar Hills and Alpine.