Does this wall need rebar support?

8 years ago

So I'm in the process of remodeling my backyard. One of the things I wanted to do was build a wall similar to this one on my pool.

I had someone come out and build the small wall (it's 28" high from where the pool already ended (where the the white ends in the pictures below and it's 18 feet long) and will be putting stacked stone veneer on it (real stone, so it's heavy). The stacked stone veneer will go from just above the water level where the red tile ends in the pictures below and cover the whole front and sides of the wall.

My question is, should this small wall have rebar in it? I'm not sure the guy who built it put any reinforcement into the wall and it is a very long wall (I'm actually fairly sure he put no rebar into it, he told me he just filled the CMU blocks on the sides an the middle with mortar/cement so the wall would be more stable). Should he have drilled into the part of the pool already there (well, the CMU block that is where the white can be seen) and put rebar into it? (or is that dangerous/could cause leaks in the pool and crack the side) Or is rebar in just the new sections fine? Or does it not need rebar? The wall is obviously not very tall, but my concern is the stacked stone veneer is super heavy and it's all on the front part of the wall, could it topple over without rebar? Should I tear it down and start all over again?

Or am I fine because it's so short? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Featured Answer

PRO

Joseph Corlett, LLC

8 years ago

If your drunken brother-in-law falls against the wall he may spill his beer, but he's not knocking the wall into the pool even if it doesn't have rebar.

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Comments (8)

katinparadise
8 years ago
bump
PRO
Mystic Pools, LLC
8 years ago
I would have drilled into the bond beam (top of pool wall) every 12" and installed 1/2" rebar. Commonly known as dowling.

Drill about 6" down, clean out the dust and fill with epoxy and set the rebar. The length of rebar should be within a couple inches the top of the CMU. The rebar slides through the CMU core and it should be filled cement as you progress.

I'm guessing you plan to backfill behind the wall. May seem like overkill with rebar, but this is way I roll. Pressure behind the wall may have an affect down the road.

The surface where the first coarse is set, must be clean and have a saturated surface without puddling, to allow for proper cement bonding. A dry surface will pull the moisture from the mortar and possibly shrink and crack losing the sealing properties.
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sockaplayr
Original Author
8 years ago
would the bond beam be where the water level tile is roughly? the white part that was already there is actually made up of CMU blocks that are filled with cement. id have to remove those and go further down?
sockaplayr
Original Author
8 years ago
i actually will not backfill any dirt behind it. it's a purely decorative wall.

my concern was of course the weight of the stacked stone veneer that i plan to put on the front of the wall.
snowpow
8 years ago
Sockaplayr, we don't really know what cement strength was used for bonding to top of the pool wall. , We don't know how well did he prepare the surface for bonding . It should be clean but rough. Also we don't know what that brick veneer weight will be. How are you planing on keeping that veneer on the wall if it is that heavy? I don't see any ledge at the top of water. My concern would be not the brick (if you use a ledge at the bottom of the wall). But more of someone kicking this wall if it is poorly cemented.
PRO
Revolutionary Gardens
8 years ago
Agree w/ Mystic, wall should have been tied into the bond beam with rebar.
Mister Mister
6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago
It needs to be tied. One day you will sell the house and someone down the line may not know the history, back-fill behind the wall .. and at that point it will definitely fail .. and could be tragic. I've seen this before. Try this ... try to get a building permit for the job as-is. They'll most likely reject it and tell you what is needed which will show you the deficiencies of your implementation. Building permits are for public safety and in this country, the standards are pretty good for the most part.