Planning a block wall around your yard? We settle height, footing and cap with you first, so it fits what your lot allows.
A concrete block wall in Aliso Viejo is a masonry fence built on a concrete footing set into the ground, with a cap along the top that keeps water out of the block and gives the wall a finished look. It gives your side or back yard a solid, private edge, and most of the schedule is set by planning and approvals before we ever dig.
Most people who call us want more privacy, a cleaner line along the back of the yard or something sturdier than a worn-out fence. The job is digging and pouring the footing, laying the block with steel in it, and finishing the top with a cap. Before any of that, we pick the height, because the limit changes with where the wall sits on your lot. If the block has to carry part of your house, that's foundation block wall installation, which is a different job.
The price mostly follows the length and height of the wall and the cap you pick, and the schedule turns on paperwork more than digging, because a soils report, a permit near a slope or an association review can each add time before we start. I'll walk the spot with you and write an estimate with your own figure on it.
Call (949) 619-8220 or send a message through the form. We get back to you and set a time for me to come out.
I come out, look at where the wall will go and answer your questions, then leave you a written estimate. It lays out the length, height, footing and cap I'd plan for that spot, along with your price.
We settle the height, the footing and the cap with you before we dig, so the wall lines up with what the city and your association allow there. Then we sort out whatever the city or your association needs before work starts.
Our crew works within the city's construction hours, 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturdays, with no work on Sundays or federal holidays. Once the cap is on, we clean up and walk the finished wall with you.
A block wall is only as straight as its footing. The city's specification says footings have to reach undisturbed natural soil and that the soil should be dampened before the concrete goes in, so we dig past any loose fill and wet the trench before we pour. If the city asks for a soils report from a licensed engineer, that comes first, and the wall above has to meet the city's earthquake and wind design requirements.
To keep shrinkage cracks in check, a masonry trade group recommends horizontal steel in the wall and control joints, which are planned seams that let the block move, set by local practice. It also says that with enough horizontal steel the joints may not be needed, so ask any builder which way they'll go, and I'll tell you ours and why. On top, a cap sheds water, and we can match it to outdoor kitchen masonry in the same yard.
What goes into a wall we build:
A hairline crack or a few loose cap pieces usually don't mean the wall has to go, so I'd fix those and save you the cost of a new one. A wall that leans, or one with cracks that keep opening, usually has a footing problem, and patching the face won't stop it. Then we'd take it down and build new on a proper footing. If I can't tell which you have, I'll say so, and sometimes that means bringing in an engineer first.
Length and height matter most, since a longer or taller wall means more block, more footing and more labor. Tearing out an old fence or wall adds work, and so does tight access where the crew has to bring block and concrete in by hand. A natural stone cap or a covered face costs more than a plain block cap, and a wall near a slope may need a permit and an engineer, which adds to the price before the first block goes down.
I started this business in 2023, and I still come out to every job, write the estimate myself and work on the wall with our masons and helpers. So the person who told you what your wall needs is the one making sure it gets built that way.
I'd rather spend extra time in your yard explaining things than have you pay for work you don't need. If I don't know something yet, I'll say so, and if your job calls for an engineer, I'll tell you. We keep the work area tidy, protect the planters and paving next to it, and our work is satisfaction guaranteed.
Know where the wall goes, how tall you want it and your association's name, and we can start planning on the first call.
Tell us where the wall goes and how tall you want it. We'll reply within one business day, and I'll come out and write your free estimate, with no pressure to book.
The city says masonry fences under 72 inches tall don't need a permit, but a building permit may be required when the wall is next to a slope. A wall built without a permit still has to meet the state building code. We check with the city's building office about your wall before we start, and if a permit is needed, we handle the application and the inspections.
Under the city's fence and wall rules, a wall can be up to 6 feet in side and rear yards and 42 inches within the front yard setback, measured from the finished ground to the top. The Aliso Viejo Community Association has its own separate rule, which holds garden walls and fences in front lots and in side lots of corner properties to 30 inches. We plan the height to whichever limit applies to that spot.
Within the Aliso Viejo Community Association, your request goes to your subassociation first and then to the MAC for review, or straight to the MAC if there's no subassociation. The association's guidelines also require a decorative cap on block walls and don't allow garden walls of uncovered block, so we plan a covered finish such as stucco or stone veneer from the start. We help you put the request together.
Look for the masonry classification from the Contractors State License Board, which covers walls and fences built with or without mortar. We're licensed and insured, and you're welcome to ask me about it when I come out.
There's no fair number until I've seen the spot, so the way to get one is a written estimate for your wall. Length, height and the cap you choose move it most, along with any old fence to tear out and whether the city wants an engineer's soils report. Call (949) 619-8220 or use the form to set up a visit.
That white film is usually efflorescence, a salt deposit that sometimes shows up on masonry. It can look bad, but it won't affect how the wall holds up structurally. If it bothers you, I can take a look and talk through what's going on with your wall.
We're based in Aliso Viejo and build block walls in the cities around it, including Laguna Niguel and Mission Viejo. Pick your city below, or call if yours isn't listed.
