While Wilson Environmental Contracting Inc., a full-service landscape design-build firm in Santa Barbara Calif., was working on a residential hardscape walkway the homeowner decided they wanted a cement wall as well.

A Ferro cement wall, a type of reinforced concrete created by installing a rebar skeleton with wire mesh, was chosen for this residential project because it can be constructed with flow and movement. To build it, two sizes of rebar were used: a half-inch (No. 4) bar for the top and bottom pieces and three-eighths-inch (No. 3) bar for the verticals.

Hog wire and expanded wire lathe were attached to the rebar skeleton in order to stabilize the structure, which was then ready to be plastered. Photo Credits: Daniel Wilson

Wilson Environmental Contracting, Inc. was originally hired to diagnose the source of a residential subsurface water intrusion problem, however the project quickly morphed when the homeowner decided they wanted an updated hardscape, which included a cement wall added along the front of the house.

Since the walkway there is curved, Daniel Wilson, owner of the full-service landscape design-build firm in Santa Barbara, Calif., suggested a Ferro cement wall, because this type of wall can be constructed with flow and movement.

Wall Construction
To build the wall, a skeleton of rebar was created along the curved walkway. Half-inch (No. 4) bar was used for the top and bottom pieces and three-eighths-inch (No. 3) bar was used for the verticals. Six-inch square hog wire (No.10) was then added to the rebar frame to fine-tune the shape and provide movement to the wall. Next, one sheet of expanded wire lathe was attached on each side, inside and outside, of the sandwiched hog wire.

Once the metal frame was complete, conduit and curved drains were placed, the footing was formed and poured, and a waterproof spray was applied to the outside of the footing.

HLM, a black tar-like material for waterproofing, was then added to the interface between the wire mesh and concrete footing, and Base-X, a stucco base coat, was applied with reinforcing fiber mesh. A second coat of Base-X was added to thin areas. This second coat also helped shape the wall and give it better movement.

Next, a bonding agent was applied to the top of the curving Base-X coat, and HLM was added to the inside bottom of the wall where it met the existing hardscape path. Finally, a coat of Blockade Finisher with waterproofing polymers and integral color was applied.

All together, the project took three layers of metal wiring woven and tied tightly together, as well as plaster mix pushed through the metal skeleton frame with a trowel, another layer of plaster to create a one-inch thick skin and several layers of sealants for waterproofing. The completed curving wall is 100 linear feet, 32 to 42-inches high and 14-inches wide.

Landscape Contractor
Wilson Environmental Contracting, Inc., Daniel Wilson, MESM