[brsox88]

I have a retaining wall on the side of my house which is also the only way to access the back yard. So getting a mower, wheel barrow or anything like that to the back yard is a pain. So I am wondering what other people would do?


1. Put a stone staircase in the middle of it.
2. Get rid of the wall, take spare blocks and make a stepped down wall parallel with the white fence and then fill with loam to make a hill?


I am thinking option #2 would be most practical, easy and cost effective. I would move the AC unit a few feet down if it's in the way. My GF is worried the wall has a purpose though..

 

[Nealtw]

I would pull out a few and put in concrete stairs half up and half down and use the block beside them on the high side.

 

[3onthetree]

So this is a duplex and you only have access on this side?

It looks to me like the grade originally sloped down and they added the retaining wall later. I would not move the a/c condenser. I personally would prefer a grass slope for the mower rather than walking it down steps.

The defining limits are where the gas pipe is and what is going on with the neighbor.
- I usually find gas pipes around 6"-12" below top of grade. If so, then you need a retaining wall, at least parallel to the house, to keep this intact. If for some reason it is buried low from an old grade, then the wall can disappear completely.
- If the neighbor has a built-up bed for the arborvitaes that match the height of your yard, then you'd need a wall parallel to the fence (which is kinda odd). If not, you can match their grade and just slope down to fence, so your slope would be 2 directions (I think there is enough room).

Start with utilities coming to mark up the underground.

 

[brsox88]

Yeah, it's a duplex. The hill would start from where the current top of the bricks are so I wouldn't suspect I'd be dealing with the gas line. I just think a hill would work better to get a mower, power washer, wheel barrow, etc.. down to the back yard. Here's a picture of how the wall works, I believe it was built this way because the street is on a slight hill.