Dry-stacked a 50-foot limestone wall in my backyard and the difference after one winter is wild

I put up a dry-stacked limestone wall near my cabin in Hill Country last October. After the freeze and thaw cycles this spring, I thought it would be leaning or bulging all over. But nope, it settled maybe a half inch and looks tighter than when I built it. Has anyone else seen dry-stack hold up better than mortared walls in cold weather?

2 comments

2 Comments

morgan.nancy4d ago

Our place up in the Ozarks had a mortared stone wall along the driveway that split right down the middle after our second freeze. I used to think mortar was the only real way to build something that would last. But after seeing your post and what @jana_hill27 said about the shifting, I am starting to change my mind on that. That half inch settlement you mentioned sounds just like what happens with our old fieldstone foundations around here, they breathe and settle and hold up way better than anything rigid. It makes good sense that letting the stone move a little keeps the whole thing from cracking or leaning in a bad way. Might have to try dry-stack myself next time.

jana_hill274d ago

My cousin had a frost-heave issue with his mortared wall two winters back. The freeze pushed the whole thing out a few inches at the base where water got trapped behind it. Dry-stack lets everything move and settle without cracking anything rigid. I've noticed that kind of shifting happens more with mortared joints in freeze-thaw areas. Your stone choice probably matters too though.