Richmond Hill's riverfront walls sit on the Ogeechee River, where the tide is smaller than on the open coast. Walls toward the sounds of south Bryan County face much bigger swings. In both places, the usual problem is soil draining out behind the wall, and it can usually be refilled and sealed.
866-398-9323Licensed seawall specialists — FL · GA · SC
Seawall Repairs by Solid Foundations provides seawall repair in Richmond Hill, GA for Ogeechee River homeowners, marsh-front lot owners in south Bryan County, and new-subdivision HOAs with shared bulkheads. Typical projects include filling voids behind riverfront bulkheads, sealing seams on walls along tidal creeks, and anchoring walls that have leaned after storm flooding. Call 866-398-9323 or use the quote form to book a free on-site inspection.
Richmond Hill grew around one river and one man. In the 1930s Henry Ford built Ford Farms along the Ogeechee River and eventually gathered about 85,000 acres here. The town took its name from his winter estate. Today the Ogeechee forms the city's eastern boundary. Population nearly doubled between 2010 and 2020, from 9,281 to 16,633. Downstream, Fort McAllister State Park sits on the river's south bank among live oaks and salt marsh. Richmond Hill is about 16 miles from Savannah, and our Savannah seawall repair crew handles scheduling and permits for Bryan County.
It depends where your wall is. NOAA's Richmond Hill station on the Ogeechee River lists a mean range of 4.70 feet and a daily high-to-low range of 5.22 feet. That's well below Fort Pulaski at the mouth of the Savannah River, where the mean range is 6.92 feet.
Closer to the sounds, the numbers climb. NOAA predicts tides at Kilkenny Creek in south Bryan County from the Fort Pulaski gauge, with high tides about 9 percent higher than Fort Pulaski's. Walls there face the coast's full range, not the river's.
On the river, current matters as much as tide. Flow along the bank scours the toe of the wall and undercuts it. Soil then leaks out from beneath and behind. On creek and marsh lots, it's mostly the tide. Water drains out of the backfill through every open seam on each falling tide.
Storms add a third problem. Hurricane Matthew in 2016 pushed the Fort Pulaski gauge to 12.56 feet above mean lower low water, a record. Irma reached 12.24 feet a year later. After water stands that high, the drain-down pulls a lot of soil through any weak joint.
Voids, with the wall still straight: We inject NCFI polyurethane behind the wall through small ports. It fills cavities and seals seams from the land side, with no digging at the river's edge. Read about polyurethane injection for washed-out fill.
Cracked caps, rotted boards, failed drains: See our page on bulkhead repair in the Savannah area.
A wall that's leaning: It needs anchors before it fails. Seawall reinforcement around Savannah shows how helical tiebacks stop the lean.
Georgia DNR. The Coastal Resources Division says a permit is needed to put a bulkhead or riprap on any tidally influenced creek or river bank. It also asks owners to contact it before maintaining an existing structure. Bank stabilization in marsh falls under the Coastal Marshlands Protection Act. Requests for a letter of permission should go in at least 45 business days before work starts.
Local offices. Lots inside city limits go through the City of Richmond Hill. Lots in unincorporated south Bryan County go through Bryan County's Building and Codes Division.
Richmond Hill sits on our Savannah-area route between two kinds of coast. South on I-95, Midway seawall repair covers Liberty County, where the Medway River has an even bigger tide. East, past Savannah, seawall repair on Tybee Island handles beach and creek frontage at the river mouth. Across the Savannah River in South Carolina, Bluffton seawall repair works under South Carolina's own coastal rules.
Seawall Repairs by Solid Foundations is an NCFI-certified polyurethane installer serving Florida, Georgia and South Carolina since 1996. We're licensed to perform marine construction in Georgia and South Carolina. We'll tell you honestly whether a repair will hold. Book your free inspection or call 866-398-9323.
You're upriver. NOAA's Ogeechee River station at Richmond Hill averages about 4.7 feet, while Fort Pulaski near Tybee averages about 6.9.
Georgia DNR asks for letter-of-permission requests at least 45 business days before work begins. Plan about two months ahead to be safe.
Yes. We repair the damaged run and seal the transitions on each side so soil loss doesn't spread into the healthy sections.
It depends on the parcel. City lots go to the City of Richmond Hill, and unincorporated lots go to Bryan County Building and Codes. We check before filing.
In addition to Richmond Hill, our licensed seawall repair team serves these nearby Georgia communities:
Service Area: Ogeechee River and the Intracoastal Waterway
We serve all waterfront properties on Ogeechee River and the Intracoastal Waterway and surrounding canals, lakes, and waterways.
Seawall Repairs by Solid Foundations also serves these waterfront communities near Richmond Hill:
Licensed, insured, NCFI-certified. Serving Florida, Georgia & South Carolina since 1996.
866-398-9323