All You May Want to Know about Gabions

Gabions are made of hexagonal twisted wire mesh filled with appropriately sized rocks or stones, stacked on top of each other to form a gravity wall. Gabions are porous structures that can sometimes be planted with vegetation. Gabion mesh is considered a 'hard' structural solution with minimal habitat and aesthetic value. Here, ZERUNFENCE, a manufacturer of wire mesh, introduces you to the advantages and disadvantages of gabion mesh and the precautions to be taken in its use.

Uses

Gabions are used to slow down concentrated runoff or to stabilise slopes with seepage problems and/or non-cohesive soils. Gabions can be used at soil-water junctions where soil conditions, water turbulence, water velocity and expected vegetation make it possible for the soil to erode under the designed flow conditions. Gabions can be used on slopes that are steeper than rock throwing and are sometimes the only viable option for areas with soft vegetation solutions.

Woven Gabion Box

Pros and cons

Some of the advantages of gabion walls are: ease of handling and transportation, speed of construction, flexibility and permeability.

Gabions provide an easy to use method to reduce water velocity and protect slopes from erosion.

Some disadvantages are: gabions are sometimes criticised for being unsightly.

Gabions are more expensive than vegetated slopes or thrown rocks. The wire baskets used for gabions can suffer severe wear and tear from the abrasion of the wire caused by the bed load movement in high velocity water flows. It is also more difficult to install and requires large equipment.

Welded Gabion Box

Planning considerations

The gabions are supplied folded flat and tied together for ease of handling and transport. The gabions can be easily assembled by unfolding all the vertical edges and tying them together, and sewing a section of connecting wire around the vertical edges. The empty gabions are placed in place and attached to the adjacent gabions. They are then filled with pebble-sized stones to a third of their depth. The connecting wires placed in each direction support the opposing gabion walls together. The metal wires prevent the gabion mesh from 'swelling' as it is filled in.

Repeat this operation until the gabions are filled. Once filled, the top is folded up and attached to the ends, sides and diaphragm. Live rooted plants, such as willows, can be placed between the rocks during the filling operation.

Gabions should be inspected regularly and after each major storm event. Maintenance and repairs should be carried out as required to ensure that it continues to function as intended. Contact us for more details, we have woven gabions and welded gabions for sale, we are at your constant service.