Commercial Estimating
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![Architectural site plan showing property boundaries, building outlines, setback lines, utility lines, and labels for elevations and features in black, white, and red indicating walls in red, with topographical lines and measurements.]()
Start with a set of digital plans. Make sure scale is correct by measuring printed scale on plans. Adobe Acrobat will let you adjust scale and measure on screen. Some plans will give you TW & BW ( Top of Wall & Bottom of Wall). Measure between these points but if grade changes unevenly between points, additional measurements may need to be made.
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![A GeoStone Wall Takeoff Sheet displaying measurements, costs, and quantities for construction, with highlighted sections and a circled area indicating Vespa Wall Designer software.]()
Place numbers in appropriates cells. Enter the BLACK numbers only. Red numbers are calculations done by the program.
TWS - Top of wall start for that section
BWS - Bottom of wall start for that section
TWE - Top of wall end for that section
BWE - Bottom of wall end for that section
Length - Measured length of section
Embed - Block under ground (all measurements should be in feet)
GeoGrid Estimator (In yellow at top) can be adjusted to reflect slopes and surcharges which typically require longer and more frequent grids.
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![Results sheet for GeoStone Wall Takeoff, showing project details, costs, measurements, and estimated quantities for wall construction including blocks, caps, geogrid, glue, pipe, rock, and wing wall. Key figures include total square footage, number of pallets, and costs.]()
Amounts are calculated automatically and results are listed on front page. Prices per unit can be adjusted on middle bottom section in yellow / tan. An overage factor at the top can be adjusted for waste and step ups / step downs. 6% - 10% has been typical for these sheets.
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![GeoStone Wall Takeoff Sheet displaying measurements and specifications for wall construction, with color-coded annotations and a circled note indicating Vespa Wall Designer.]()
An extension of the spreadsheet allows for quick copy and paste input to Modular Design softwares such as Vespa.
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![Screenshot of Vespal Wall Designer software showing a design with a table of elevation points and a corresponding 2D elevation view graph with angled lines. The table lists top, bottom, crest, and toe elevations for multiple points with a consistent 614.00 high crest elevation and varying other measurements.]()
Paste into section of software where wall heights and stations are entered in. Make sure to list any crest and toe slopes and applicable benches that impact the wall. Multiple walls can be designed all in one easy to manage file. Also Revisions can be made without impacting the original design in case changes need to be made or reverted back to a particular state.
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![Screenshot of EBSCO Multi-family wall designer software displaying a wall panel layout with blue and gray sections, dimension details, and control options for wall configuration and section placement.]()
Utilities and other structures that may impact the wall running behind, under or through can be notated here. Embedment can be adjusted as well.
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![Screenshot of EBSCO VESPA Wall Designer software with structural design diagrams, including elevation and section views of a wall, with design parameters and measurements.]()
Surcharge can greatly impact the wall design. Make sure to place the correct loading in the applicable areas behind the wall.
Live load - surcharges that move (cars, trucks)
Dead Load - Surcharges that are stationary (buildings / structures)
Offset - how far back off the wall these items will be
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![Screenshot of EBSco Multi-family Wall Designer software interface, showing reinforcement layout for a wall section, with layer details and analysis results.]()
A design will be created but this does not always mean adjustments won't have to be made by the designer.
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![Screenshot of a software interface for report options related to wall and section analysis, including selections for wall sections, summary reports, section geometry, project information, design inputs, analysis results, and save options.]()
A calculations report can be generated at this point based on options selected by the designer. It can be as simple as a few pages or very detailed with many pages.
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![Screenshot of AutoCAD software displaying a detailed technical drawing or 3D model with layers of green, black, blue, and other colored lines and annotations.]()
All information at this point can be exported to AutoCAD with Elevation and Section views for each wall in the site package.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Through the most powerful form of connection which is Rock Interlock. By filling the cores with crushed limestone (#57 or #67) GeoStone utilizes friction to lock the units together. Much like Velcro (on a much larger scale of course) the connection is based on direction of applied strength. Pulling two strips of Velcro apart, up / down, is not very difficult. Pulling them apart, side to side, or horizontally is near impossible. That is because there is literally thousands of connection points. This is very similar in concept to GeoStone and Rock Interlock. The gravel has thousands of connection points in each core of each block. If one or many of those points shift, they reform connection with the many other points within the cell. A wall's connection is meant to resist horizontal or lateral pressures exerted from behind.
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The answer to that would largely depend on the situation. The industry standard (rule for all SRW's) is that you should put grids no less frequent than every two feet in height. Factors like slope, soil conditions, backfill material, and surcharge (loading) can have an effect on frequency of grid placement and the length / strength of the grids. Remember, adding a layer or two of grid is cheaper and easier than rebuilding a wall.
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There again, that largely depends on the situation and your skill-set. If you are a DIY kind of person and you feel confident that this is something you would like to tackle, then by all means try it. This does not mean that you should attempt to build a 20' tall wall with a pick and shovel. Anything 4 ft and higher within most city limits is considered a structural retaining wall and requires a permit and/or an engineer stamped wall design. I will always recommend at least talking to a professional installer or GeoStone specialist before attempting to build anything 4 ft or higher. If you have any questions, call us (205) 678-9969
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First off, both are equal in strength due the same footprint and connection properties. Large commercial or anything over 16 ft tall - definitely the 8" block. This is due to extreme pressures that may require more compression resistance that are typically not present in most residential applications. Anything else, I would use the 4" block. The 4" builds faster, looks better, and is so much easier to work with. It is easier to maneuver, to carry, and its flexibility is unmatched. Not to mention, its overall look is unique and there is nothing else out there like it. You can also combine the two to create banding or Ashlar.
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There is something we just came out with that is kind of an "Easter egg" in our website. If you will notice, there are two blocks in either corner of the bottom menu. Click the one on the left and it goes to our Online presentation or "sub-web" that we use to help train people who already know the basics of modular wall construction. This is "next level" instructions on what makes GeoStone unique and how to do certain procedures only the professional installers know. Good luck and as always, if you have any questions, please call us at: 205-980-0770