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Fieldstone Ontario Concrete and Masonry
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Retaining wall construction in Ontario CA - a wall that holds your slope and drains well

Dirt washing onto your patio, or a slope you can't use? We build block retaining walls that hold the ground and let water out.

Request an estimate(909) 738-1042
Curved tiered block retaining walls frame planted beds and a small tree, with steps and pavers in the foreground.

What does it take to build a retaining wall in Ontario?

Retaining wall construction in Ontario means building a wall that holds back the soil on a sloped or uneven yard, so you get level ground you can actually use. Most of the walls we build are concrete block stacked dry, without mortar, with units that lock together and hold the hill back with their own weight.

Maybe the hill behind your house keeps sliding toward the patio, or you'd like a flat spot for grass where the yard drops off. The price moves with the size and shape of the wall, how involved the design gets, how easy it is to reach that spot on your lot and how much else the job takes in, like digging out and hauling soil away. The schedule mostly turns on whether the city wants a permit for your wall, and that comes down to how tall it is and where it sits. When I come out, I walk the spot, take photos and write up what I'd build and why, so you've got a number for your own yard instead of a guess.

Why Ontario homeowners call Fieldstone for retaining walls

You can count on me looking at your yard myself and staying through the build, with a crew that keeps things tidy and tells you straight what needs doing.

  • I come out myself

    I look at every wall job in person, and I'm on site with our crew while it gets built.

  • In business since 2023

    I started this business in 2023 after years patching walls, steps and block fences at rentals all over this area.

  • Licensed and insured

    We're licensed and insured, and you're welcome to ask me about either when I come out to look at your slope.

  • A tidy site, because people live here

    Years of working around tenants taught us to keep paths clear and the yard picked up while the work goes on.

  • Straight talk on what can wait

    If your slope can go another season without a wall, I'll tell you, because selling you work you don't need isn't how I run things.

Retaining wall options we build

Most retaining wall trouble starts with water, so I plan drainage first, then we mark out where the wall sits and how tall it runs, since that shapes what the city wants.

  • Gravity block wall

    For a planter bed, a raised lawn or a level spot for a patio, dry-stacked block holds the soil with its own weight, and that's what most yards need. If that new patio is where you'd like a fire to sit around, we also do fireplace installation in block or stone that matches the wall.

  • Reinforced block wall

    When there's more soil to hold back, block can be paired with layers of soil reinforcement laid back into the fill behind it. Those layers make the wall act wider and heavier than the block could on its own.

  • Drains you can service later

    Weep holes, the small openings that let water seep out through the face, tend to clog over the life of a wall. Drains built so they can be cleaned out are the more reliable way to keep water from building up, so that's the side I lean toward.

  • Fixing or replacing an older wall

    If you've already got an old wall that's cracking or tipping, I'll tell you honestly whether masonry restoration can save it or it's time to rebuild. Tearing out sound work just costs you money, so I don't do it unless the wall needs it.

What happens when you call about a retaining wall in Ontario?

Each wall gets planned around your yard and how you use it, and you see what I'm seeing before anybody starts digging.

  1. You get in touch

    Call (909) 738-1042 or send the form, and we get back to you to set up a time for me to come out.

  2. I look at the slope

    I walk the spot, take photos and show you what I'm seeing, from where the water runs now to where the wall would sit.

  3. Your written estimate

    You get a write-up of what we'd build, how it drains and why, plus anything that can stay as it is.

  4. We build and walk it

    We set a schedule together, our crew builds with me on site, city inspectors check any permitted work, and we walk the finished wall with you.

Questions about a step? Call and talk it through.

(909) 738-1042

Retaining wall questions we hear

How much does a retaining wall cost in Ontario, CA?

Hiring a contractor to build a poured concrete retaining wall across the US usually costs about $30 to $50 per square foot. That's a national figure for poured concrete, not our price, and a block wall in your yard can land somewhere else. For an Ontario number on your own wall, the estimate gives you one in writing.

Is a block retaining wall better than a wood one?

Where rot or splinters worry you, block is the better pick. One concrete block industry manual notes that block units resist cracking and, unlike treated timbers or railroad ties, won't splinter or decay.

What causes a retaining wall to fail?

Poor drainage is by far the most common reason retaining walls perform badly, and left alone it can turn into outright failure. Water that can't get out from behind the wall keeps pushing on it, so when you collect quotes, ask each builder how water will drain from behind your wall.

How do I get my yard ready for a retaining wall?

Pick a start date that leaves a few days for underground utilities to be marked, because every state has an 8-1-1 Call Before You Dig service that marks the lines before digging. That way the crew can dig around them with care. Once the wall is finished, the block wall installation guide says heavy construction equipment should stay at least five feet back from the face.

What kind of contractor builds a block retaining wall in California?

A masonry contractor does this work. California's masonry contractor license class covers building load bearing and non-load bearing walls from masonry units, with or without mortar, and that takes in a dry-stacked block wall.

Can I build my own retaining wall in Ontario?

Yes, the city lets a homeowner get a permit and build on their own house and its accessory buildings or facilities, as long as they live there or will. The same height and street rules still apply, and as the permit holder, you'd be the one telling the city inspector when the work is ready.

Retaining wall construction rules in Ontario

The city of Ontario requires a permit for a retaining wall over 2 ft. in height, measured from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall, so a wall that barely shows above the dirt can still need one once you count what's buried. A wall next to the public right-of-way along a street has more to it, because where more than 3 feet of earth gets held back there, the city wants the wall tiered into a series of stepped walls instead of one tall one. Any wall placed inside that street strip first needs an encroachment permit from the City Engineer. When your job needs city sign off, we take care of the permit and set up the inspections, and if the wall runs near a property line, we check with the city early so there are no surprises.

Around Ontario, most calls are for a raised backyard edge, a planter bed along a side fence or a slope creeping toward the patio, and we build the same kinds of walls in Upland, Pomona and plenty of the cities around them. Side yards here are often tight, so we plan where the dug-out soil goes and how the crew gets in before the first shovel goes in.

Ask Fieldstone about your retaining wall

Call (909) 738-1042 or send the form now, because a wall that needs a permit or utility marking goes smoother with time built in before digging.

Request an estimate(909) 738-1042