Core-filled, reinforced masonry walls for higher loads and a rendered, built-in finish. Engineered where needed and built by a QBCC-licensed team.
Besser block walls are built from hollow concrete blocks, reinforced with steel and filled with concrete. The result is a solid, permanent wall that suits higher loads, driveways and walls close to the house, and it can be rendered or painted to match your home. Steps and garden beds can be built in as part of the wall.
We build besser block and masonry retaining walls across Brisbane, Logan, Ipswich, the Redlands and the Gold Coast, from our base in Underwood. Block walls are the go-to for driveways, house pads, walls close to buildings and taller engineered walls, and they suit residential, commercial and civil projects where strength and a permanent finish matter.
Steel reinforcement and concrete fill through the blocks turn the wall into one solid structure.
Taller walls and walls carrying load are built to engineered plans, and we arrange the engineering.
Leave it as face block, or render and paint it to suit your house and landscaping.
Stairs, planters and returns can be built into the wall as one piece.
In Brisbane, a retaining wall generally does not need building approval when all of these are true: the total height of the wall and the ground it retains is no more than one metre above natural ground level; it’s at least 1.5 metres from a building or another retaining wall; and there’s no surcharge loading (like a driveway, pool or another wall) in the zone behind it. It also can’t form part of a pool-safety barrier.
Once a wall is over a metre, close to a building or another wall, or carrying extra load above it, it typically needs engineering and building approval from a licensed certifier. Heights can also be combined where walls are stacked or terraced. We’ll tell you exactly where your job sits when we assess the site, and arrange engineering when it’s needed.
This is general information based on Brisbane City Council guidance and can change — it isn’t formal advice for your specific site. Requirements differ between councils (Brisbane, Logan, Gold Coast and others) and always depend on the actual conditions on your block. We’ll confirm what applies to your job.
Nearly every failed wall we’re called out to comes down to the same two things: drainage and footings. Water builds up behind a wall with nowhere to go, the pressure doubles, and the wall gives. Or the footings were too shallow for the load. Both are invisible once the job’s done — which is exactly why cheap walls look fine on day one and lean by year three.
That unseen groundwork is the whole point of how we work. We’re built for what’s behind the line.
Retaining walls are priced per lineal metre, not per square metre. As a broad guide, they commonly run from around $200 to $2,000+ per lineal metre, depending heavily on height, wall type, drainage, engineering, site access and how much excavation is involved. A low garden sleeper wall sits at the lower end; a tall engineered concrete wall at the upper. The only real number is a measured quote — and ours is free.
Figures are general market ranges for guidance only, not a quote.
Often yes — but only if the wall was designed for it. The extra height and wind load a fence adds has to be planned into the wall and its footings from the start. If you’re considering both, tell us early and we’ll design them to work together — a Colorbond or timber fence set properly on a wall built to carry it.
Generally not if the retained height is under one metre, it’s at least 1.5 m from a building or another wall, and there’s no extra load behind it. Over that, or near structures, it usually needs engineering and certifier approval. We confirm what applies to your site.
Walls over about a metre, walls carrying load above them, and stacked/terraced walls typically need engineering. We arrange certified engineering whenever a job calls for it.
Concrete sleepers are usually quicker and more affordable for most boundary and garden walls. Block walls suit higher loads, walls near structures and jobs where you want a rendered, built-in look. We'll recommend what suits your site.
Almost always poor drainage or undersized footings — water pressure building behind the wall, or footings too shallow for the load. Both are hidden, which is why doing them right matters most.
Yes. Block walls can be left as they are, or rendered and painted to match your home. We'll talk finishes through when we quote.
Tell us about your slope and we’ll assess the site and have a preliminary quote back to you within 24 hours. Servicing Brisbane & the Gold Coast.
