Concrete retaining walls in Galt CA - a wall that drains and holds the ground
Soil washing down a slope or slumping onto your patio? We build poured concrete walls with drainage behind them, so the ground stays put.
Does your slope in Galt need a concrete retaining wall?
A concrete retaining wall in Galt holds back soil where your yard changes height. It stands on a footing, the wide concrete base underneath it that keeps the soil behind from tipping the wall over or sliding it forward.
It usually starts with a bank that keeps washing onto a patio or walkway, or a slope you'd like to turn into usable yard. The price depends on how tall and how long the wall is, whether it really has to hold back ground, how much digging the footing takes and what the drainage behind it needs. The schedule depends on whether the job needs a permit and how long the wall has to gain strength before soil can go back against it. I can't tell you much of that until I've seen the ground, so the written estimate is where you'll see what goes into your wall.
- Licensed and insured.
- Free in-person estimates.
- We respond within 1 business day.
Retaining walls, slabs and pool decks
How we build a concrete retaining wall
I start every retaining wall by asking whether it truly has to hold back ground or just shape a planting bed, because that settles whether poured concrete is worth what it costs. When it's a structural wall, we dig out for the footing, set and check the forms, then pour and finish the wall. The drainage behind it gets as much of our attention as the concrete, because it decides how the wall holds up and nobody can see it once the soil goes back. When the wall is ready to take the load, we backfill behind it and clean up the site.
A wall often opens up the rest of the yard. Cutting a slope back can leave level ground for concrete floor installation under a shed, shop or outbuilding. In a yard with a grade change, a wall is often what lets concrete pool decks sit flat beside the water. We plan the wall and the slab together, so water running off one doesn't end up behind the other.
Why Galt homeowners call Galt Concrete for retaining walls
The owner writes your estimate
I come out myself to look at your slope and write the estimate, and then I work the wall alongside our crew. The person who walked your yard and planned the drainage is the one there when it goes in.
Trained to reset crooked forms
I learned under a foreman who made us reset a form if the string line was off by a hair, and I've run Galt Concrete that way since I started it in 2023. On a wall, a form that's slightly out shows in every foot of the finished face.
Galt soil checked before digging
Soils mapped as Galt series are fine textured and only moderately well drained, but that describes the soil type, not your lot. So I look at your ground and where its water goes before I plan the drain behind the wall.
Licensed, insured and satisfaction guaranteed
We're licensed and insured, and that's worth confirming with anyone you hire to dig into a slope beside your house. Satisfaction guaranteed on every job is the one promise we make, and the written estimate spells out what the job includes.
On a retaining wall, the parts that hold up are the ones you won't see, the footing and the drain behind it. If you have a slope that needs holding, call (209) 865-3675 or send us the details with the wall's rough length and height and a few photos of the slope.
Get a free estimate for your retaining wall
Send the form and we'll get back to you within one business day to set a time. I'll come out, look at your slope and write a free estimate, with no obligation to book.
- Licensed and insured.
- Free in-person estimates.
- We respond within 1 business day.
What happens after you call about a retaining wall?
Call or send the form
Call (209) 865-3675 or use the form, and we'll set a time for me to come out. It helps to have the wall's rough length and height ready, plus a few photos of the slope.
I walk the slope
I look at the ground and where the water runs, and I ask how you'll use the space above and below the wall. You get a written estimate that shows what goes into the job, from the footing to the drainage.
We sort out the permit
If you go ahead, I check whether your address falls under the city or the county and talk with that office about what the wall needs. When a permit is required, we handle the paperwork.
Prep, form, pour, finish
We dig, form, pour and finish the wall, and soil doesn't go back behind it until the wall has gained enough strength or been braced. Before we leave, I walk you through curing and care.
Retaining wall questions from Galt homeowners
How much does a concrete retaining wall cost near Galt, CA?
Poured concrete retaining walls in the Sacramento area usually cost about $35 to $50 per square foot of wall face, which is the side of the wall you see. That's a market figure, not our price. The estimate I write after seeing your slope is where you'll get a Galt number for your wall.
Do I need a poured concrete retaining wall or a dry-laid wall?
Choose the wall for the job it has to do. If it holds back ground, plan on a poured concrete structural wall. If it only shapes a bed or a low edge, a dry-laid wall of stacked material with open joints costs much less. Poured concrete is the bigger expense, so it's worth being sure you need it before you pay for it.
What causes concrete retaining walls to fail?
Most retaining walls fail because water builds up behind them and pushes, so every wall should let that water drain down and away. Gravel backfill, or drainage blankets with drain pipes, are the usual ways to do that, and they protect what you spend on the wall. Capping the top keeps water out from above. Where the backfill drains poorly, it's worth considering waterproofing the back face.
Who issues retaining wall permits in Galt, CA?
The city's Building Division issues building permits. City code allows retaining walls only under a grading permit when a property is first developed, as part of a roadway improvement project, or where the soil needs stabilizing. The Public Works Director decides when a wall is a necessary part of stabilizing soil. I check which office your address falls under and ask how those rules apply to your lot.
How do I build a retaining wall taller than four feet in Galt?
Galt's city code has a wall over four feet built in benches, a series of shorter walls, with no single wall over three feet and each step at least three feet deep. The exception is along a project's outside property lines, where the code sets no height limit. That changes how a tall slope gets laid out, so I look at where your wall would sit before we plan it.
What license covers concrete retaining wall work in California?
California's C-8 concrete contractor classification covers contractors who form, pour, place, finish and install concrete, which is the work a poured wall involves. Before anyone starts digging, ask which license they hold.
Work that often comes with a retaining wall
Concrete floor installation
If you're adding a shop, shed or garage on the leveled ground, a floor poured on a packed base gives it a flat, solid surface.
Concrete pool decks
A pool set into a sloped yard often needs a wall to hold the grade, and the deck beside it should shed water away from that wall.