If you are like many homeowners in the United States, the state of your yard is likely important to you: not only does proper landscaping create a more attractive exterior for your home, but a good landscape design can decrease noise levels, block unwanted views, and decrease energy costs by helping to regulate temperature inside a home. Additionally, professional landscaping has been shown to increase property values by as much as 20%. It may also help your health: 67% of urban survey respondents said that having a nice, green space in their area would encourage them to exercise more regularly. For this reason, landscape services are extremely popular in the U.S.: the industry generates around $74 billion dollars a year and is projected to reach $80.06 million by 2015. But while much of this business comes from traditional tasks like lawn analysis and garden design, a significant portion of the business is spent designing and building retaining walls. But what are retaining walls? Does your yard need one? Read on to find out.
What is a Retaining Wall?
Retaining walls are structure used to provide structural support on a property. They are used to solve issues such as potential slipping hillsides, fault lines, and erosion. These problems can have extremely destructive consequences in the event of a flood, earthquake or other ecological or geological event. As a result, you have likely seen retaining walls in public areas and private yards to help protect nearby buildings and other problems. However, in some cases, homeowners also use retaining walls to create multi-level gardens, expand the usable area of a yard, and other aesthetic purposes.
What Materials are Used to Build Retaining Walls
Concrete retaining walls are among the most popular forms of the structure. However, if your wall is residential, you likely want to use a substance that compliments the look of your home and the area. Retaining wall designs can also be made from blocks, wooden posts, bricks, rocks, and railroad ties. The proper material will depend on the potential damage a property presents; therefore, aesthetic projects can use almost anything. But don’t worry about compromising the appearance of your yard with a structural retaining wall: plants, shrubs and other features can often use retaining walls to create a beautiful yard.
Do I Need Retaining Walls?
If you are unsure if your area is susceptible to floods, earthquakes, erosion, and other problems, the best way to find out if your property is at risk is to contact a landscaping company to inspect your yard to determine if you need a retaining wall service. Likewise, if you are interested in creating a multi-level garden or other project, contacting a landscaping company can help generate a variety of landscape design ideas to determine if the concept is right for your property.
Professional landscapers offer homeowners a variety of helpful services, such as attractive and functional landscape designs. They can also help homeowners choose the location of patios, decks and fences to increase their enjoyment of their property. If you think your enjoyment or your yard would benefit from retaining walls, contact a landscape service today to discuss this potential project.