No howitzer , no problem . This easy technique will help you build a I. F. Stone wall quick and painlessly .
A mortarless , or dry - set , gemstone wallimparts an old - style character to the landscape . A well - built ironical - ready wall will last for years . The first settlers in America build wall this way , and many of those walls are still standing today .
Besides not require mortar , a dry - set wall does n’t need a footing . It will flex as the earth move due to freezing and melting , but it wo n’t devolve down . For this kind of durability , however , you must select stones with as much surface touch between them as possible .
Where the shape of the Stone form spaces that could cause the stone to move , fill in with small pieces of stone . You ’ll also need bondstones — long , savourless stones that are farsighted enough to traverse the front and rearward wythes of the wall , tie them together . sharpen the face of the wall inward from bottom to top about 1 inch for every 2 invertebrate foot of height . You might have to cut the upper course of bondstones to length .
What You Need
Building a Dry-Set Retaining Wall
A dry - setstone retaining wallgoes up using the same techniques as a freestanding wall but want thick stones throughout . Deadmen ( foresighted bondstones ) are set into the slope to tie in the structure , and adrainage systemis required to prevent water supply from building up behind the wall and exerting insistence on it . When you cut away the gradient for the wall , take into account enough room to dig the trench so the wall ’s rear edge light 15 to 19 inches from the stand of the excavation . Build the wall two courses thick , backfilling it with gravel as you go and coif bondstones every three or four courses . Be certain to knock about the wall so the free weight of the soil wo n’t push it out .
Step 1: Sort Stones
Sort the stones into sizing groups . Use the large , flattest stones for the base , smaller endocarp for the succeeding courses , and small chunk for filling in . For the wall ground , rest out and excavate a deep 8 inch deep and 6 inches broad than the rampart on each side and at each end .
Step 2: Add Gravel and Lay First Course
Shovel about 4 inch of gravel into the trench ; level and tamp it . Set bondstones on both destruction of the deep . Using stones of different lengths , lay the front wythe ( face ) of the first course . Place a bondstone every 4 to 6 feet . Set the thin bound of the stones in the center of the trench .
Step 3: Fill Wall and Continue
place the back wythe of the bulwark and fill the space between the two wythes with small I. F. Stone or rubble . persist in repose the course , opt pit with the same heaviness but a variety of lengths in each course . cancel the joints of the previous course . swing stones if needed .
Step 4: Check Batter
control the batter — the taper from bottom to top — with a batter gauge as you work . Reposition stones if necessary , and depart the width of the stones on alternative courses . Every third course , put bondstones at 3 - fundament interval .
Step 5: Lay Top Course
Choose the two-dimensional , large-minded stones for the top course . trench mortar the capstones in billet if you like . Tip the stones in the top course of instruction slightly toward the nerve of the rampart to improve drainage by insert small savourless gemstone under them .
