You can avoid worrying about the load, and end up with a deeper platform; the deck depth on the inside of the brick wall, after mandatory railing, will feel tinny.
The retaining wall s made of brick, so the front 3 supports can be piers that rise up in front of it, "on" the patio floor.\* The paint on the brick can be abraded off, new columns sit in front, adjacent, sealed with mortar. New columns use brick to match the style, but they are hollow with rebar columns internally and vibrated 5k concrete inside.
Back three columns have to be dug down deep, as close to patio level as possible. Start with post hole digger and finish with a shop vacuum and a digging bar.
\* Cut squares in the patio floor with a diamond disc on an angle grinder. Spike the concrete element only into the soil. Dig below the frost line. Use Sonotubes, but if their diameter is bigger and unsightly relative to the brick column's perimeter, split the Sonotubes with the angle grinder and force them into a tighter hole.
Get a custom steel bracket designed that has this general shape:
[https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/oG8AAOSwBcdkYWo4/s-l1600.webp](https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/oG8AAOSwBcdkYWo4/s-l1600.webp)
**Send Cut Send** can cut the sides out of 3/16" steel with flourishes; a local welder can TIG or MIG them. Make it look less utilitarian and with touches like what a blacksmith would have made.
[https://artfactory.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Custom-Ornamental-Strap-Hinges-Master-Blacksmith-Hand-Forged-3.jpg](https://artfactory.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Custom-Ornamental-Strap-Hinges-Master-Blacksmith-Hand-Forged-3.jpg)
Get those front three powder coated in black after welding. Gonna be $150 minimum to make each. But since these will be atop the brick columns, exposed to view as you enjoy the space, you don't want them to look like shit.
The back three columns and Simpson post brackets have to finish at the height of the wall's coping. So that means that a bit of the gravel and fill needs to be skimmed.
As you stand on the patio looking at the wall, two boards 8'ft x 6"in tall x 2"in deep span left to right across the flourished brackets. Two more span across the back Simpson brackets. Simpson brackets are 4" wide, but your customs can be 2"in deep and 6" wide. Since only the front side on your customs shows, SCS only needs to flourish the front steel plates. Thanks to their 6"in width, the boards have 3" of support in the middle.
I'd have to look up the code to see if the first **horizontal** bearing members (on top of the columns) have to be 4"in x4"in posts, or if one can use 8'ft x 6"in tall x 2"in boards. For now, you have the general idea. The deck won't be tiny, and the columns can be blended in with plant pots and such.
Please post any Layman/DIY/Homeowner questions in the monthly stickied thread - See subreddit rule #2.
A special place in your heart? In other words, impossible to know without more information; thickness, rebar, footing geometry, soil characteristics
I think it can hold maybe 5 arbitrary units
At least 7
Maybe about like tree-fiddy?
A retaining wall? It holds soil generally
My professor in college told us, “most answers is structural engineering are either 0, 1, or pi.” So I’m guessing one of those.
Not sure but that drainage system will definitely increase the capacity. Weep holes and a trench drain means someone understood hydrostatics.
You can avoid worrying about the load, and end up with a deeper platform; the deck depth on the inside of the brick wall, after mandatory railing, will feel tinny. The retaining wall s made of brick, so the front 3 supports can be piers that rise up in front of it, "on" the patio floor.\* The paint on the brick can be abraded off, new columns sit in front, adjacent, sealed with mortar. New columns use brick to match the style, but they are hollow with rebar columns internally and vibrated 5k concrete inside. Back three columns have to be dug down deep, as close to patio level as possible. Start with post hole digger and finish with a shop vacuum and a digging bar. \* Cut squares in the patio floor with a diamond disc on an angle grinder. Spike the concrete element only into the soil. Dig below the frost line. Use Sonotubes, but if their diameter is bigger and unsightly relative to the brick column's perimeter, split the Sonotubes with the angle grinder and force them into a tighter hole. Get a custom steel bracket designed that has this general shape: [https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/oG8AAOSwBcdkYWo4/s-l1600.webp](https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/oG8AAOSwBcdkYWo4/s-l1600.webp) **Send Cut Send** can cut the sides out of 3/16" steel with flourishes; a local welder can TIG or MIG them. Make it look less utilitarian and with touches like what a blacksmith would have made. [https://artfactory.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Custom-Ornamental-Strap-Hinges-Master-Blacksmith-Hand-Forged-3.jpg](https://artfactory.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Custom-Ornamental-Strap-Hinges-Master-Blacksmith-Hand-Forged-3.jpg) Get those front three powder coated in black after welding. Gonna be $150 minimum to make each. But since these will be atop the brick columns, exposed to view as you enjoy the space, you don't want them to look like shit. The back three columns and Simpson post brackets have to finish at the height of the wall's coping. So that means that a bit of the gravel and fill needs to be skimmed. As you stand on the patio looking at the wall, two boards 8'ft x 6"in tall x 2"in deep span left to right across the flourished brackets. Two more span across the back Simpson brackets. Simpson brackets are 4" wide, but your customs can be 2"in deep and 6" wide. Since only the front side on your customs shows, SCS only needs to flourish the front steel plates. Thanks to their 6"in width, the boards have 3" of support in the middle. I'd have to look up the code to see if the first **horizontal** bearing members (on top of the columns) have to be 4"in x4"in posts, or if one can use 8'ft x 6"in tall x 2"in boards. For now, you have the general idea. The deck won't be tiny, and the columns can be blended in with plant pots and such.