Wall height & engineers - When do engineers need to design walls

[djh]

On http://www.pavingexpert.com/featur03.htm it says "A single skin wall is only suitable to a height of around 450mm; anything higher should be double-skinned for stability. Any wall higher than 1.2 metres must be designed by a structural engineer"

I haven't been able to find the source of this requirement for an engineer. Could somebody tell me where it comes from, please?

[Captain Concrete]

I would hazard a guess that saying, "Any wall higher than 1.2 metres must be designed by a structural engineer" is a very good recommendation although not a legal requirement.

[djh]

I would hazard a guess that saying, "Any wall higher than 1.2 metres must be designed by a structural engineer" is a very good recommendation although not a legal requirement.

Well, perhaps, but when I'm the naive layman and my 'expert' is telling me something else, I need to tell him something more than 'I think it's a good idea' or 'somebody on the Internet said you had to do it'! And in my naivety I'd think that we've been building walls for a very long time and I'm surprised if there aren't agreed rules for simple straight walls?

[lutonlagerlout]

its not just engineers its a planning issue
in luton maximum height of a front wall is 900mm and of side and rear walls its 1.8m ,any higher you need planning
experience has taught me that any retaining wall over 1200mm that isnt designed tends to fail sooner rather than later

but the key thing here is *retaining wall*

for a free standing wall an experinced builder should be able to advise
but over a metre we always go to 9 inch brickwork with 330 or 440 piers every 2.4-3m

cheers LLL

[djh]

its not just engineers its a planning issue
in luton maximum height of a front wall is 900mm and of side and rear walls its 1.8m ,any higher you need planning
experience has taught me that any retaining wall over 1200mm that isnt designed tends to fail sooner rather than later

but the key thing here is *retaining wall*

for a free standing wall an experinced builder should be able to advise
but over a metre we always go to 9 inch brickwork with 330 or 440 piers every 2.4-3m

cheers LLL

Thanks for the feedback; I know about the planning rules but this isn't a boundary wall and it isn't over 1.8 m and it isn't a retaining wall.

And what you suggest for a freestanding wall is markedly different to what is suggested on the page that I quoted at the start of the thread! Hence my question as to the source of all this information so I can check it for myself and be confident when I talk to my builder.

[lutonlagerlout]

with all due respect I have been laying bricks for 30 years on jobs up to 50mill shopping centres
tonys advice is good but not always what happens in practise
in practise lots of boundary walls 1.8m are single skin with piers every 2.4m
before building regs came in in the 60's everything was taught by old men to young men
the blokes that taught me were taught by their fathers etc etc
wall height etc varies in different parts of the country due to different weather features and sub grades
so a wall in luton might last 50 years but the same wall would blow over in north wales

FYI

http://www.building.co.uk/freestanding-walls/3076271.article

this is BRE 14 which basically says what I have just said
horses for courses

LLL

[lutonlagerlout]

or this even
http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/buildin....enwalls
see nobody agrees
LLL

[seanandruby]

If you hire s reputable builder he should know the 'rules' we go by, as LLL states " no one agrees" . In the end i s'pose s lot of it comes down to common sense and safety.