Home › Portfolio › Railroad Tie Edging Replaced With a Block Wall in Olympia, WA
Sta-Built Construction tore out a run of old railroad ties along a backyard planting bed in Olympia, WA and rebuilt the edge as a 40 foot block retaining wall in May 2026. The design sheet calls for a wall 1 foot 6 inches high in 4 inch Cottage Stone block in Pewter, tied into an existing block wall at the corner, with a strip of pea gravel and a plastic divider along its base. The crew photos show the wall going up and finished on May 13.
Project Details
- Location: Olympia, WA
- Service: Railroad tie removal and block retaining wall rebuild along a planting bed
- Existing edge: Old railroad ties, about 60 sq ft of demolition on the work order
- Wall: 40 linear ft, 1 ft 6 in high (60 sq ft of wall face)
- Block: 4 inch Cottage Stone in Pewter, 4 x 11.75 x 6.75 inches, from The Home Depot
- Base: 4 to 6 inch excavation, about 4 inches of compacted 5/8 minus gravel, first course leveled block by block, drain rock behind the wall
- Pea gravel: 20 sq ft, 4 inches deep over weed block fabric, with a plastic divider
- Built: May 2026 (finished May 13 in the crew photos)
- Project investment range: $3,800 to $6,100
- Warranty: 17-Year Craftsmanship Warranty
Before and after
The problem
Along one side of this backyard, a raised planting bed runs between the lawn and a chain-link fence. Its front edge was a line of railroad ties, weathered gray, and the design sheet notes them simply: “Remove old rotten wood.” At one end the ties met a short block wall that already edged the gravel parking area beside the yard, so the yard had two different edges meeting at the corner.
The solution
The design replaces the ties with a 40 foot block wall, 1 foot 6 inches high, running from the existing wall to the end of the bed. A narrow strip of pea gravel with a plastic divider runs along the base of the new wall on the lawn side.
The materials
The design sheet lists the block as 4 inch Cottage Stone in Pewter, and the reference photo saved to the project is The Home Depot listing for a 4 x 11.75 x 6.75 inch Pewter concrete retaining wall block. It is a split-face gray block in the same style as the existing wall it joins. The work order adds 20 square feet of pea gravel, 4 inches deep, over weed block fabric.
How it was built
The work order’s wall spec: mark the line, excavate 4 to 6 inches, spread about 4 inches of 5/8 minus gravel in the trench and compact it, set the first course leveling each block on its own and against its neighbors, install drain rock behind the wall, then lay the remaining courses, sweeping each one clean, with concrete adhesive bonding the courses. The ties came out first.
At the corner the new courses had to meet an older wall that was already standing. The May 13 photos show the new block stepping into that corner, and by the end of that day the wall was finished end to end with the gravel strip and divider in.
The finished result
The railroad ties are gone, and the bed now has a block wall along its full 40 feet in the same style as the wall at the corner, so the two edges read as one. The pea gravel strip separates the lawn from the base of the wall.
What a project like this costs
Project investment range: $3,800 to $6,100. This range reflects the scope of this completed project and is not a current quote.
The work order has four parts: base prep for 40 linear feet of wall, 60 square feet of wall build, demolition and disposal of the railroad ties, and 20 square feet of pea gravel. The design sheet lists excavation and backfill as not applicable for this short wall, and the run is a single straight line from the existing corner. A taller, longer, or curved wall will price differently.
See more on our retaining wall page and our Olympia service area. Related projects: a cracked concrete driveway replaced with pavers in Olympia and a front-yard retaining wall in Tacoma.
Related questions
What does it cost to replace railroad tie edging with a block wall in Olympia, WA?
This project came in between $3,800 and $6,100, covering removal of the ties, a 40 foot by 1 foot 6 inch block wall, and 20 square feet of pea gravel. The range reflects this completed project and is not a current quote.
What block was used?
A 4 inch Cottage Stone block in Pewter, 4 x 11.75 x 6.75 inches, from The Home Depot. It is the same split-face gray style as the existing wall at the corner.
Can a new wall be tied into an existing block wall?
On this job it was. The new wall starts at the corner of a block wall that was already in place along the gravel parking area, and the crew stepped the new courses into that corner.
How long did the installation take?
The crew photos show the wall going up and finished on May 13, 2026, with the pea gravel strip and plastic divider in place along its base.
Planning something similar?
If a bed in your yard is edged with old timbers, Sta-Built can look at the run and the walls around it and lay out a block edge that fits. Schedule a free design consultation.
This project documentation was prepared by Sta-Built Construction from the project records and photos from our crew, October 2026. Technical review by Ben Metsker, Manager.