Gabion structures are stone structures that fit into metal or plastic containers in the form of nets. They are used to strengthen the banks of slopes and reservoirs, as well as in the form of retaining walls and elements for the construction of dams. In order to make gabions, you need to get acquainted with the technology of fastening grids and their elements. It is important to know the requirements that apply to materials.
Design requirements
Before making a retaining wall from gabions, you should familiarize yourself with VSN-APK 2.30.05.001 03. This is a guide where you can find regulatory documents. According to them, at present two types of walls based on gabions are known, which can be with a reinforcing panel or massive. The latter option is most commonly used. Box gabions are required to create. As a foundation for the wall, flat ones are sometimes used, which are also called mattresses. Massive structures hold the soil due to its own weight.
In the manufacture of the retaining wall, some requirements should be considered. For example, when designing structures, it is necessary to carry out a calculation. In the process, you must check the stability of the structure, determine its cross section depending on the characteristics of the soil and the height of the system. In the process of checking stability, you must determine how high the risk of the rollover, shear and failure of the supporting parts.
Parameter Definition
For an ordinary home master, when the design will be characterized by a small height, the calculation can be omitted. You can choose the width by eye. If the wall has a sufficiently large length, it should be ensured by its vertical stiffness. To increase stability, the design must be made stepped, the base should be wide. From above the design should go on narrowing. Cross elements may be provided.
Before creating a retaining wall of gabions, you must determine the height, which should not exceed 8 m. If this value should be greater, then regulatory documents require the presence of berm. This is a horizontal slope of large width. Above the lower rows, the upper gabions should not hang more than 15 cm.
When laying containers, the dressing should be observed. The minimum displacement of the vertical joints should be 25 cm. The gabions should be filled with stone 5 cm above the container mark. This requirement is due to the self-compaction of stones during construction and the impact of vertical loads.
The need for foundation and drainage
A low retaining wall of gabions should be installed on compacted soil, which acts as a base. Before starting work, the site must be cleared and leveled. If the height of the structure is not more than 1 m, a foundation should be provided. It should be made of flat gabions. Under them is provided a bed of sand and gravel. The foundation can be poured with concrete. Quite often, you can not do without drainage at the base. In order to stabilize the soil, you can put geotextiles under the gabions. This material is used when laying mattress elements.
Technology of work
Before starting, structures and materials should be prepared. For the walls, box-shaped gabions from a mesh, which is made by the method of double torsion with diaphragms, should be used. The latter are necessary to provide rigidity. The metal mesh must be corrosion resistant.
Containers for gabions can be purchased and ready-made. Such products are delivered folded. They can be made of welded wire mesh or netting. In the first option, all elements are interconnected. But if you plan to make a retaining wall from gabions from a chain-link, then the wire for this design should have double torsion with an anti-corrosion coating.
When buying, it is important to pay attention to the quality of the wire. This applies not only to the main structure, but also to the joints. Materials must be purchased in larger quantities than required. This is especially true for those craftsmen who perform work for the first time. The stock should be 5-15 percent.
Preparation of all necessary
It is not recommended to start work alone. For manipulation you will need:
- containers for gabions;
- knitting wire;
- stone aggregate;
- mount;
- anchors;
- shovel;
- hammers.
A tool for fastening parts can be a gabion stapler. It can be pneumatic or mechanical. Such devices reduce the time spent on work. Instead of a knitting wire, staples in the form of rings are used to fasten the nets. They are made of wire, the diameter of which is 3 mm. The coating may be a zinc-based layer. This material is supplied in a tape that is installed in the stapler.
If the device of the retaining wall of gabions will provide for the manual connection of the elements using a wire, it should be wound with a snake. Between turns it is necessary to leave a distance of 10 cm. The process requires labor and time costs, but will save money. You can determine the required number of brackets and wire based on the weight of the containers.
Gabion device technique
Before you install a retaining wall of gabions with your own hands, you must unpack the containers. One of the elements is located on the surface, it should be raised and the side walls should be straightened. The evenness of the parts should be checked, as well as the geometric shape of the grid. If the walls, bottom and cover are not connected, they are connected with wire or a stapler. The next step is to set the diaphragms, if any. Their step is usually from 75 to 100 cm. The diaphragms are connected to the walls and the bottom.
Next, you can check the location of the corners and the plane of the box. In the listed order, you should collect several elements that will form the basis of the first row. Several finished containers are arranged in a row. They are fastened to the soil or to each other, if necessary, using rings and anchors.
If you want to make a retaining wall of gabions, the technology must first be studied. It provides for compliance with several stages. The next step is to fill the first row containers with stones. They are stacked as tightly as possible. The volume is filled in several stages. If the height of the container is 50 cm, then there should be 2 approaches.
After filling each layer, it is necessary to reinforce the structure using ties of knitting wire. It is used to fasten the walls relative to each other. After filling the grid, the lid closes and then fastens with brackets or wire. All of these steps will need to be repeated for the next series. The lower and upper containers communicate with each other in the corners or in those places where the diaphragms were installed.
Final work
When arranging retaining walls from box gabions, a number can be performed in several stages. The last container is left empty. On the perimeter of the side face you need to attach the next element. It will be impossible to do this if the stones have already been laid inside.
After the installation is complete, the walls fall asleep again. This can be done manually or using special technologies. If an excavator will be used in the work, then place it on a slope with extreme caution. The material for backfilling is sand, which has a large or medium fraction with layer-by-layer compaction.
Finally
Specialists can make a retaining wall of turnkey gabions. The price of such work is 4,500 rubles. per cubic meter. Such structures can be made of different materials.
Additional advantages of such systems are water permeability, soil reinforcement and ease of installation. Therefore, having examined the photo of the retaining walls from gabions, you will be able to understand whether it is within your power to cope with the work yourself.