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We build brick retaining walls in Southaven, MS that hold back soil and shape your landscape without sagging or leaning. Our masons design proper footing, drainage, and brick layout so your garden or yard walls stay straight, safe, and attractive season after season.
Southaven Masonry provides professional brick retaining walls throughout Southaven, MS, Mississippi and the surrounding area. Our licensed, insured crew delivers safe, clean, on-time work with a free estimate before anything begins. Call (662) 863-5021 or request your free quote.
Custom Brick Retaining Walls Built for Southaven Yards
If you have a sloped yard, sinking flower beds, or soil washing out every time it storms, a brick retaining wall can solve several problems at once. Southaven Masonry designs and builds brick retaining walls that actually match the way water, clay soil, and landscaping work here in Southaven and north Mississippi, not just what looks good in a catalog.
We start by walking the property with you. We look at slope, where water collects after heavy rain, existing drainage lines, tree roots, and access for equipment. In this part of DeSoto County, many yards have heavy clay that holds water, so we pay close attention to how that moisture will sit behind a wall. We use a laser level or builder’s level to measure the grade accurately instead of guessing by eye, which helps us determine how tall the wall should be and how far it needs to step out.
From there, we talk through how the wall should look and function. Some homeowners want a low brick garden wall that quietly keeps mulch and soil off a patio. Others need a taller, engineered retaining wall to hold back a hillside or create a level pad for a driveway extension, pool deck, or play area. Southaven Masonry explains where a decorative brick veneer is enough and where you truly need a structural wall with footing, reinforcement, and engineered backfill so you are not surprised later by settling or bowing.
Design Options, Brick Choices, and How They Hold Up
Brick retaining walls do more than hold dirt. They shape how your yard feels and how easy it is to maintain. During design, we help you choose brick and layout options that work with both your home and our local weather.
Most Southaven homes use red or earth-toned brick. We can match your house brick very closely, or we can intentionally contrast it with a different color for raised beds or seating walls around a fire pit. You can choose traditional running bond brickwork, a soldier course along the top, or decorative patterns on the face for walls that are in high-visibility areas. Caps can be brick-on-edge, precast concrete, or natural stone, depending on whether you want a smooth surface to sit on or a more rustic finish.
Behind the face, the structure matters more than the look. For small garden retaining walls that are only a couple of bricks high, we can often build a solid brick and block system on a compacted base. For taller walls, we typically combine concrete block or poured concrete for strength with a brick veneer for appearance. That way you get the classic brick look without relying on brick alone to handle soil pressure.
We also plan for how the wall will age. Southaven sees summer heat, winter freezes, and heavy rain events. We detail expansion joints, control joints, and drainage so the wall can flex slightly without cracking. Mortar mix is chosen to be strong but not so rigid that the brick is damaged when the soil moves a bit during wet and dry cycles. These small technical choices go a long way in how your wall will look in 10 or 15 years.
How Southaven Masonry Builds a Brick Retaining Wall That Lasts
A solid brick retaining wall happens long before the first brick is laid. Southaven Masonry follows a step-by-step process that focuses on preparation and drainage, because that is where most failures begin.
1. Layout and excavation: We mark the wall with stakes and string, then excavate for the footing and the space behind the wall. In Southaven’s heavy clay soil, we dig down to undisturbed ground, not fill dirt, so the footing rests on stable soil. We also leave room behind the wall for gravel backfill and drainage pipe.
2. Footing and base: For structural walls, we pour a reinforced concrete footing below the frost line with rebar sized to the wall height and load. For shorter garden walls we may build on a compacted crushed stone base if it suits the site. The key is a level, well compacted base. We check this with a level and compact in thin lifts so it will not settle.
3. Wall structure: Depending on the design, we build the structural core using concrete block or poured concrete, tying rebar from the footing into the wall. Then we lay the brick veneer in front, tying it back to the structural core with wall ties. For small walls that do not carry much load, we may build solid brick with proper bonding. Joints are tooled to shed water and keep a consistent look.
4. Drainage and backfill: Behind the wall we install perforated drain pipe at the base, wrap it in filter fabric, and cover it with clean gravel. This collects water and directs it away from the wall. Above that we transition to compacted soil. On many Southaven lots we also include weep holes through the brick face so any trapped moisture has a way out.
5. Finishing and cleanup: We install caps, clean mortar smears, and grade the soil on both sides of the wall so water runs away. We walk the site with you to confirm the wall height, transitions, and tie-ins at steps, fences, or patios are what you expected. We also explain how to keep landscape irrigation from soaking the wall constantly, which is a common source of long term staining and moisture issues.
Costs, Permits, and What Affects Your Price in Southaven
Homeowners often ask why two same-length brick retaining walls can have very different prices. The answer is in height, access, soil conditions, and structure. Southaven Masonry is open about these cost drivers so you can plan realistically.
Height and load are the biggest factors. A 2 foot decorative planter wall with minimal soil pressure typically costs less per foot than a 5 or 6 foot wall that holds back a slope. Taller walls need deeper and wider footings, more rebar, more gravel backfill, and sometimes engineer review. If the wall will support a driveway, parking pad, or structure near the top, that also increases the design requirements and cost.
Access matters too. If we can get equipment close to the site, excavation and material handling are faster and cheaper. In tight Southaven backyards with limited side access, we may have to bring materials in by smaller machines or by hand, which adds labor time. Existing conditions like tree roots, old railroad ties that have to be removed, or utilities running through the intended wall line can also affect price and schedule.
Permits and engineering vary by location within Southaven and DeSoto County. Shorter garden walls with no load on top often do not require engineering. Taller structural walls may need drawings or calculations and, in some cases, city or county review. Southaven Masonry can coordinate with your engineer or recommend one if required, and we help you identify up front whether your project crosses those thresholds so you do not have a half built wall waiting on paperwork.
During your estimate we break the price into logical pieces: excavation and footing, structural wall, brick veneer, drainage, and caps or steps. That way, if you need to adjust budget, we can talk about realistic changes, such as shortening part of the wall or changing cap materials, without compromising safety.
What to Ask Before You Hire a Brick Retaining Wall Contractor
A brick retaining wall is not a project you want to redo in five years, so choosing the right contractor is as important as the design. Here are practical points Southaven homeowners should cover before signing a contract.
Ask exactly how drainage will be handled. If a contractor cannot clearly explain where the water behind the wall will go or does not mention drain pipe and gravel backfill, that is a red flag. In our climate, trapped water is the fastest way to crack or push over a wall. Also ask how they will address your specific yard, such as that wet corner that stays soggy after a summer storm.
Confirm what type of structure is behind the brick. Nice looking brick alone does not mean the wall is strong. Make sure you know whether it is a brick veneer over concrete block, poured concrete, or a solid brick design, and why that choice fits your wall height and use. Have the contractor show you how the brick ties into the structural core.
Review layout and finish details in writing. This includes wall height at several points, how the ends terminate, how it interfaces with existing patios or walkways, and what kind of cap is included. For multi level or terraced retaining walls, make sure drawings or at least dimensioned sketches are provided so everyone is picturing the same thing.
Finally, ask about experience with our local soils and weather. A contractor who regularly works in Southaven and north Mississippi will have seen clay expansion, drainage issues on neighborhood slopes, and utility layouts common in local subdivisions. Southaven Masonry is happy to walk you through nearby examples of our retaining wall projects so you can see how they have held up over time, then help you design a brick retaining wall that fits your property and your plans for it.
