5 Factors that Make Sleepers Ideal for Retaining Walls

Posted on May 21 2019 - 5:00am by Ella

You probably won’t have the freedom to choose whether to add a retaining wall to your garden. If flooding becomes an issue, a retaining wall generally becomes a necessity. However, you will have the freedom to choose the right material.

Here are just five reasons to opt for timber sleepers instead of using brick or stone.

  1. Low Cost

Retaining walls are never going to be cheap; in fact, many homeowners drastically underestimate their cost. That said, you can always stick to a stricter budget by opting for railway sleepers instead of brick or stone. Sleepers are often recycled, making them cheaper to supply, and they don’t require much in the way of concrete or mixer materials.

  1. Strong Adaptability

Sleepers are quite large, so you might assume that they are not particularly adaptable. However, keep in mind that they can be cut to different sizes, providing you with the opportunity to place them either horizontally or vertically. They also don’t require too solid a base, so you can create a tiered system of several smaller retaining walls up a slope.

  1. Quicker and Easier Installation

Timber retaining walls can be put up very quickly, something that’s going to reduce your labour costs and avoid an unpleasantly drawn out installation process. With other materials, you’ll need to have concrete mixed and then have each brick or piece of stone perfectly placed. It’s easy for something to go wrong, and the process takes a lot longer.

  1. Superior Appearance

Sleepers are used for decorative purposes in many gardens that don’t even require a retaining wall. Their timber possesses a smooth and delicate appearance that is generally preferred over the hard-edged look of stone or brick. Timber will also age better, developing personality as it ages. The same is not true of stone or brick.

  1. Durability

Timber swells and contracts slightly according to the moisture it encounters. That might seem like a problem, but it’s actually something of an advantage. Such flexibility allows sleepers to stand the test of time without cracking. The concrete used to bond stone and brick can fail after a few years, and any repair work is going to cost a pretty penny.