Landscaping & Design Ideas

2009 marked a record year for repairs for our company. Some of these repairs were performed on patios and retaining walls installed over ten years ago.  We were able to address the problem areas and correct them, leaving the project looking the way they did when they were installed.

Unfortunately, some repairs were performed on projects completed in the last five years.  With the boom in new home construction at that time, also came a rise in the number of companies performing hardscape work.  It was hard for us to see projects recently completed already in a state of disrepair.  For some, the only solution was to take it apart and start over.

At this point we were able to see the root cause of many of the problems.  Some retaining walls and patios were built with insufficient base.  Some walls were not backfilled with stone, nor was there any drainage.  There was no quick fix, and the homeowner was left with no choice but to pay to have the wall or patio built anew.

In many cases, we were told the company who originally installed the project was not returning their phone calls, or sometimes were out of business.  The customer had no other recourse but to sue to try to recoup some of their loss.  As unfortunate as this is, it happens all too often with many contractors in various trades.

It’s one reason I urge customers to carefully review proposals from different contractors.  In many cases they are not “apples to apples” comparisons.  It may be that one proposal calls for half the base material of the other.  By using less than the minimum amount of required base for a specific project, it is doomed from the start.  It may be a retaining wall that requires both drainage and geogrid to anchor it into the hillside.  Not putting either in will drive down the installation cost, but will also cause premature failure, leading to a collapsing wall after only a few years.

In some cases, the contractor may be well intentioned, but may not possess the knowledge or experience to complete the project properly.  Don’t allow your project to be their training ground!

Seek references, ask what kind of guarantee they provide, but be sure they will be around if something does go wrong in a few years.  Retaining walls and patios are expensive undertakings for a reason.  One contractor may be substantially higher than another for good reason.  The best price is not always the best value, this is true for anything we purchase.

When properly installed, a patio or retaining wall in the Cleveland area should provide years of hassle free enjoyment for you and your family.