Retaining wall construction in Lehi UT - a wall that holds your slope and lets water out
Slope creeping toward the patio or an old wall starting to lean? We build retaining walls that hold the soil and let water out.
What goes into a retaining wall that stays put?
Retaining wall construction in Lehi, UT means building a wall that holds back the soil behind it, the backfill, so a slope stays put instead of sliding toward your yard, patio or house. At Precision Lehi Concrete and Masonry, we build block and stone walls heavy enough to resist that push, with drainage behind them so water doesn't add to it.
Most calls start one of two ways. You've got a sloped yard and want flat ground you can use, or there's an old wall out back that's started to lean, crack or bulge. The first things I want to know are how much soil the wall has to hold and where the water goes when it rains, because those two answers shape everything else, and a tricky slope is honestly my favorite kind of job. If what you need is a freestanding garden or privacy wall rather than one holding back dirt, that's our concrete block walls work instead. The price moves with how tall and long the wall is, what it's built from and how much digging the site takes, and the schedule turns mostly on whether the wall needs an engineer's design and a permit. I'll go over what your wall calls for and give you your price at the estimate.
- Licensed and insured.
- Free on-site estimates.
- Expect a reply within 1 business day.
Retaining walls and the stonework around them
How we handle retaining wall construction
Water behind a wall causes most of the trouble I see, so drainage gets as much of our attention as the block. We lay out the wall, dig out the slope, then pack a gravel base or pour a footing so the first course sits dead level, because every course above it follows that first one. For a block wall we use segmental block, which is concrete units stacked without mortar and locked together with keys or connectors, and as the wall goes up we run drain pipe along the base, fill right behind the block with clean gravel and compact the soil behind that in layers so it doesn't settle and push. When a wall needs an engineer, we build from the engineer's stamped design, so the footing, block, drain and backfill all match the drawings. We finish with the cap and clean up the site.
Some jobs start with an old wall instead of a bare slope. If it's stone or brick that's still solid but has crumbling joints or loose pieces, masonry restoration can save it, and I'll tell you straight when a wall is too far gone for that. Once a new wall gives you flat ground, plenty of homeowners want somewhere to sit by a fire, which is where our fireplace installation work comes in.
Why Lehi homeowners call us for retaining walls
I do the estimate myself
I come out myself to look at your slope and give the estimate, so you're talking with the person who'll be running your job. Nothing gets lost between what you asked for and what gets built.
Five years of figuring out failures
We've been in business since 2021, and a good share of our calls are walls that lean, crack or crumble. Working out why those failed is what shapes how we build new ones.
Licensed and insured for wall work
We're licensed and insured. That matters on a retaining wall, because the job means digging into a slope next to your house and moving heavy block across your yard.
Footings below Lehi's frost depth
Lehi requires a footed retaining wall to have the bottom of its footing below the frost depth, measured from the wall's front face, so we figure that depth from the low side where the wall shows, not the top of the slope. We build to that in Lehi and in the cities around it, from Provo up into the Salt Lake Valley.
The part that decides how a wall holds up ends up buried behind it, so I'd rather see your slope than guess at it. Send us a few details or call (385) 338-6022 to set up a visit.
Get a retaining wall estimate for your slope
Send the form and we'll reply within one business day to set a time. I'll come out, look at your slope and give you a free on-site estimate, with no obligation to go ahead.
- Licensed and insured.
- Free on-site estimates.
- Expect a reply within 1 business day.
What happens after you call about a retaining wall?
Call or send the form
Call (385) 338-6022 or send the form, and we'll get back to you to set up a visit. It helps to have a rough wall height in mind and to know about where your property line runs.
I come out and look
I walk the slope, see where the water runs and ask what you want the finished yard to do, and if there's an old wall I work out why it's failing. You get my price and a plain explanation of what your wall calls for, including whether it needs an engineer and a permit.
We handle permits and inspections
Once you say go, we take care of the permit application and book the city's inspections when your wall needs them. On a lot steeper than a ten percent slope, the city also has to review and approve the grading and building plans before work starts.
We build, then walk it
Our crew of masons does the work with me on site, from the base and drain up to the cap. When the wall's done, I walk it with you before we pack up.
Lehi retaining wall questions
Do I need a permit to build a retaining wall in Lehi?
Lehi's code lists walls that hold back less than 4 feet of fill among the walls that don't need a building permit, so the amount of soil behind your wall is the first thing to pin down. If your lot slopes, check your own case with Lehi City's Building and Inspection Department, which issues building permits in the city.
Can I use boulders or railroad ties for a retaining wall in Lehi?
Only for smaller landscaping walls, because Lehi doesn't allow rock or boulder walls holding back more than 4 feet of fill, or treated lumber and railroad tie walls 4 feet or taller. A wall that has to hold more than that calls for another system, such as segmental block. A good question to ask any contractor is how much fill the planned wall will hold behind it.
What causes a retaining wall to fail?
Poor drainage is by far the most common reason a retaining wall performs badly, and if it's left alone it can lead to the wall failing outright. Water that builds up behind a wall pushes on it along with the soil, which is why Lehi requires every wall to have a drainage system or method that relieves that pressure, unless the wall is designed to take it.
How do I know if my retaining wall needs an engineer in Lehi?
If your wall needs a building permit in Lehi, it needs an engineer, because the city requires every retaining wall permit submittal to carry the stamp of a civil, structural or geotechnical engineer registered in Utah. Plan on an engineer who has designed that type of wall before, and their stamped design is what we build to.
How much does a retaining wall cost in Lehi?
I give you a price at the on-site estimate, once I've seen how tall the wall needs to be, how long it runs and how hard the site is to dig and drain. Two things catch people off guard on taller walls. A wall that needs a permit also needs an engineer's design, and when a wall leaves a drop of six feet or more, Lehi requires a fence along the top, so count that fence as part of the job.
Can I build a retaining wall on my property line in Lehi?
Not without your neighbor's written permission, because Lehi doesn't let any part of the wall, or any ground disturbed while building it, go past the property line without it. That permission is a permanent or temporary easement, and since building a wall means digging behind it, the work area runs wider than the wall itself, so get it arranged before we start.
Work that goes with retaining wall construction
Masonry restoration
An older stone or brick wall with sound bones but tired joints and loose units can often be brought back instead of torn out and rebuilt.
Fireplace installation
Once the wall turns a slope into level ground, an outdoor fireplace gives that new patio space a place to gather on cool Utah evenings.