2005 - Culvert Retaining Wall

It seems fall is a great time to get caught up on some outdoor projects. The air is cool and dry and once we get a couple freezes the bugs seem to not be the bother they are in the summer. This project was one I have wanted to do for several years but time never seemed to be on my side. So when I shifted gears from shop projects to outdoor clean-up projects I decided today would be a great day for the project. I actually started it late on Friday afternoon and completed it on Saturday.

As you can see, the culvert is at the bottom of a steep incline from the driveway level. This is the north side of the drive and mowing this can be a real challenge. The other problem is that the culvert is hard to trim around. We built a retaining wall on the south side of the drive some years ago and thought this side needed it as well. The first step was to dig the end of the culvert out from the dirt and rocks that washed into it. Then I used a piece of salvage tile I had to extend the end of the culvert about 16 inches. It is not exactly the same size but works well as the bottom of the ditch is higher then the bottom of the old culvert. This occurs from the gravel falling into the ditch as vehicles pass by. I supported the tile with a piece of concrete and then began laying up the wall. I used small wedge shaped pieces of concrete to hold the tile in place and block up the opening.

The digging was easy and it didn't take long to complete the wall with the broken concrete pieces left from the old shop removal. I hauled fill dirt and completed the project by filling in behind the wall and putting a slight slope from the driveway to the wall. I won't be able to get grass growing on this yet this fall so this is the way it will remain for the winter.