Segmental Retaining Wall Specifications

AB Spec Book

Download a full copy of the AB Spec Book

The following specifications will provide assistance to a broad range of professional retaining wall designers. These technical specifications will allow a wall designer to source and reference specific information for use in developing project documents.

Included are: product standards, installation and water management procedures, design details, industry standards, allowable construction tolerances, project design checklist, project installation checklist, project inspection checklist, reference design methods, and geogrid reinforcement options.

The goal is to provide formatted specification sheets that summarize information published by Allan Block and other relevant publications, as well as provide a comprehensive document for most applications which utilize mortarless concrete block as a component of a segmental retaining wall.

The document focuses on composite structures built by combining an Allan Block facing unit with a reinforced soil mass, and appropriate drainage details. The intent of these specifications are to assist the local wall design engineer, but not limit their flexibility for any given design situation

Can Segmental Retaining Walls Satisfy the Requirements of My Project?

Segmental Retaining Walls (SRW’s) have evolved from being used in garden and landscape applications in the 80’s and 90’s, to now having found their way into commercial projects, roadway sites, and major industrial applications. With estimates of hundreds of millions of Allan Blocks installed worldwide, mortarless segmental retaining walls have proven their value and durability in the construction marketplace.

Projects range from walls up to 50 ft (15.2 m) in height to miles of walls used in roadway, water and other applications. The flexible nature of the system has proven to eliminate the need for frost footings in northern climates, provide additional drainage in tropical areas, and allow for additional flexibility in earthquake plagued sections of the world. In short, there are very few site problems that cannot find a cost effective solution using Allan Block Retaining Wall Products.

Click on the links below to view or download that specification:

Allan Block Specification Guidelines

Web Version

Web Version

Microsoft Word

Word .DOC

Adobe Acrobat

Adobe .PDF

en espanol

en español

Geogrid Specifications Guidelines

Web Version

Web Version

Microsoft Word

Word .DOC

Adobe Acrobat

Adobe .PDF

en espanol

en español

Allan Block Water Management Guidelines

Web Version

Web Version

Microsoft Word

Word .DOC

Adobe Acrobat

Adobe .PDF

en espanol

en español

Terraced Retaining Wall Guidelines

Web Version

Web Version

Microsoft Word

Word .DOC

Adobe Acrobat

Adobe .PDF

en espanol

en español

Complex Composite Structures Guidelines

Web Version

Web Version

Microsoft Word

Word .DOC

Adobe Acrobat

Adobe .PDF

en espanol

en español

No-Fines Concrete Specifications

Web Version

Web Version

Microsoft Word

Word .DOC

Adobe Acrobat

Adobe .PDF

en espanol

en español

The above specifications integrated into one document:

Adobe Acrobat

Adobe .PDF

ASTM C 1372 Standard Specifications (Partial)
for Segmental Retaining Walls

Web Version

Web Version

Microsoft Word

Word .DOC

Adobe Acrobat

Adobe .PDF

ASTM C 1262 Standard Test Method for Evaluating the Freeze-Thaw Durability (Partial)
of Manufactured Concrete Masonry Units and Related Concrete Units

Web Version

Web Version

Microsoft Word

Word .DOC

Adobe Acrobat

Adobe .PDF

Allowable Construction Tolerances

Web Version

Web Version

Specifications, General Notes and Pre-Construction Checklist

AutoCAD

AutoCAD .DWG

Construction Specification Institute (CSI) MasterFormat™ 2004 (Division 32)

Microsoft Word

Word .DOC

Adobe Acrobat

Adobe .PDF

Retaining Wall General Notes

Microsoft Word

Word .DOC

Adobe Acrobat

Adobe .PDF

Construction and Inspection Checklist

Web Version

Web Version

Microsoft Word

Word .DOC

Adobe Acrobat

Adobe .PDF