0:00 Introduction
0:49 Foundations
2:32 Laying Foundations
3:00 Building the Wall
3:48 Laying the Bricks
6:00 Laying the Second Course
6:41 Copings
In today’s Bradstone how-to guide, we’ve got a short demonstration on how to build a small wall in your garden using Bradstone old town walling blocks and wall copings.
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Before we get into the guide, it’s important to mention that If you’re planning on building a retaining wall over 600mm high or any wall over 900mm, it’s important to an experienced professional, such as one from the Bradstone Assured installers.
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How to Build a Small Garden Wall
❇️ Foundations
Foundations aren’t always necessary with small walls that are under 600mm high. For example, if you have an existing concrete base or firm stable block paving, you could build straight onto that. As the wall we’re building in this video is going into an area of the garden, we’ll need to dig out simple strip footing using concrete. The size of the footing is determined by the walling blocks, as you need to leave 100mm on either side of the walling block. As the wall is only going to be 450mm high, an excessively deep footing is not required - between 100mm and 150mm is fine. The walling blocks need to be laid below ground level, approximately 50mm, so the footing isn’t visible when the wall is finished.
❇️ Laying Foundations
Prepare the concrete by mixing sand and gravel with a little water. Then, pour the concrete into the trenches, spreading evenly with a shovel. Ensure the concrete is flat, with no slope in any direction, and leave the concrete to harden overnight.
❇️ Building the Wall
Start by dry laying the walling blocks to indicate where they will sit on the footing. You’ll also be able to see if blocks need to be cut to size. Remove the walling blocks whilst you set up as a string line and prepare your bricklaying mortar. For bricklaying mortar, you will need to use a mix of 3-part building sand and 1-part mortar.
❇️ Laying the Bricks
The first step is to make the bed which involves placing a line of mortar on the concrete footer and rippling it with the point of the trowel to make sure there’s some give. Lay out enough concrete for over a block's length and add a mortar joint between the block and the existing brick wall. This can be done by spreading some concrete onto one end of the block, creating a vertical joint. Once in place, settle it to the correct height which is indicated by the string line with a rubber mallet, firmly tapping the block into place.
Repeat this process, using a long spirit level to ensure the flatness and alignment of the blocks. For blocks that need to be cut, we recommend marking the block with chalk and using a hammer and chisel to make the cut.
❇️ Laying the Second Course
This is done in the same way as the first course, but the walling blocks need to be staggered to ensure the vertical joints don’t coincide. This wall will be finished with a coping but before it’s installed it’s a good idea to point the horizontal and vertical joints using a small point trowel.
❇️ Copings
As we did with the walling blocks when we started the project, we dry-lay them to see how well they fit and if any need cutting. For coping stones, you need to plan the joints between copings - like the blocks you’ll need to avoid vertical joints coinciding, so they’ll need to be offset. Ensure there is an overhang along the long face and short end as well as a 10mm joint between each coping.
Lay the copings onto a bed of mortar and tap them into place using a rubber mallet. Use a spirit level to check it’s flat along its length, but with a touch of fall towards the front edge to allow rainwater to fall off. Finish off by pointing the coping stones, just like we did with the walling blocks.
For more information on how to build a small garden wall, you can read our dedicated blog post:
🔶 www.bradstone.com/blog/post/h...
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