Top Retaining Walls Christchurch builds dry stone retaining walls in Christchurch, the oldest way there is to hold ground back. A dry stone wall uses no mortar at all. Every stone is chosen so its shape and weight lock it against the ones around it, and the wall stays up because of how it is put together rather than what glues it.
The wall has two faces with smaller stone packed between them, and long through stones set at intervals to tie both faces into one structure. The courses lean back into the bank slightly, and each stone bridges the joint below it so no vertical line runs through the wall.
Done properly it will stand for a century. Done carelessly it looks the same on day one and slumps within a few winters, which is why this is one of the few jobs where the skill of the person building it matters more than the material.
| Method | No mortar, stone locked by shape and weight |
|---|---|
| Structure | Two faces with hearting between, tied by through stones |
| Batter | Leans back into the bank as it rises |
| Height | Best under about 1.2m |
| Drainage | Complete, water passes through the wall |
| Stone | Canterbury basalt, schist, limestone or field stone |
| Life | Very long when built correctly |
It suits low terraces, garden walls and rural boundaries. Banks Peninsula and the Port Hills have plenty of stone walling history to draw on, and a dry stone terrace in a Cashmere or Lyttelton garden sits perfectly in that landscape.
We keep dry stone under about 1.2m. Taller than that and the engineering case for a mortared or reinforced structure becomes hard to argue against, and consent requirements kick in anyway.
Complete drainage. Water passes straight through the whole structure, so there is never any pressure behind it and never a blocked outlet to worry about. Small plants colonise the joints, and the wall gets better looking every year rather than worse.
You also get a wall that can be taken apart and rebuilt with the same stone if you ever need to move it.
Every wall we build gets drainage. At least 300mm of clean free draining metal, a perforated coil at the base running to a real outlet, and geotextile over the top so silt cannot block it. It is not an optional line on our quotes.
Not if it is built right. The skill is in stone selection and in the through stones that tie the faces together. It is a craft job and we price it as one.
We would not recommend it, and at that height you need consent and an engineer anyway. Use block or poured concrete for the structure and face it in stone if you want the look.
Some plants will colonise, yes. Most owners plant the joints deliberately with alpines or small succulents. If you want it clean, it needs occasional attention.
Our old wall was rotten right through and leaning into the neighbour's place. They pulled the lot out, put proper drainage behind the new one and had it finished in three days. Swept the site clean every afternoon before they left too. Tidiest crew we have ever had here by a long way.
They sorted the consent, which was the bit I was dreading. Dealt with the council so I never had to, and kept me in the loop the whole way through. The driveway sits right above it and has not shifted a millimetre.
Steep section, shocking access, and they still made it look easy. They suggested two smaller walls instead of one big one, which saved us thousands in engineering fees. The terrace in between is now my favourite part of the whole garden.
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