(Topic ID: 328307)

Front step suggestions (masonry help)

By jp1985

1 year ago


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#1 1 year ago

One of the great things about Pinside is that we all come from different backgrounds, I'm looking for masonry help! I need to fix some steps at a house and want some input on the (best/easiest/cheapest) way to do it as an amateur. It doesn't have to be the prettiest thing.

My first thought is to get a piece of stone cut that is the length of the concrete below the steps plus a .5"-1" overhang. The pavers in place now tend to get stepped on and needs to be shorter or they will continue to break.

Alternatively I could try to build a form and stack concrete on top to bring the stairs up to level but I have concerns about binding the existing together and it's also colder over here right now (under 50f) so I may need to wait until spring. I think Friday is supposed to be 50f however so maybe I could get one day to do concrete.

Doing vinyl over the door trim is my next project.

Thank you for any help/suggestions in advance!

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#4 1 year ago
Quoted from TDK-WPG:

Are you married to concrete? It would be easy and inexpensive to do a treated wood landing over the existing concrete, anchoring the frame to what you have in place there. Would require some ongoing maintenance but an easy DIY job.

I'm not married to concrete but I'm kind of worn out of maintaining the back wood steps as they get a lot of use.

#5 1 year ago

I need 48"-54" long and 3 feet deep. I'll look around if I can find one of these dimensions.

#6 1 year ago

The concrete below looks okay.

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#10 1 year ago
Quoted from northvibe:

Is that 1 concrete pad/step poured into/attached to your foundation footer?

I think it is. I’m considering using a grinder with diamond blade and cutting the stone to be more flush and then setting it again for now. Part of the issue is that people stand on the overhang.

#12 1 year ago
Quoted from northvibe:

well your door threshold seems to stick out over it. mmmmm. youd have to demo a little more, but you could add onto it to make more of a pad ie. 3x3 OR just a longer step/pad. If you want just the one step then it may be the door removal and figuring out what to do.

If I go out any further with the step it will start taking away from the two columns of cars that park in the driveway. Unless I don’t understand your idea.

#16 1 year ago
Quoted from pinballcorpse:

What it looks like is that there are 3 pavers-two short ones (1 at each end) and a longer one sitting on top of a poured concrete step. It doesn't look like the pavers "broke" per se, but rather the pavers are not well-adhered to the underlying concrete step. I see a lot of sand-were the pavers just sitting on sand placed on top of the step? I do not see a mortar bed under the pavers.
If there is any overhang and little-to-no bond, then the pavers will keep lifting up when anyone stands on the unsupported edge. (This can also pose a safety issue.) The center one probably is resisting uplift because there appears to be a section of wood at the door threshold on top of the back side of the longer paver.
If the center paver is easy to remove, the "easiest solution" is to just abandon the use of the pavers altogether and use the concrete step. This might make the height of the risers different (the height from the driveway onto the 1st step of the concrete versus the height of the step into the house). It is best to have the steps uniform in height.
If keeping that step and those particular pavers is the goal, the cheapest solution to keep that configuration is to remove the pavers, clean the underlying concrete step and backside of the pavers very well making sure there is no debris, and use either a mortar or adhesive to bond the pavers to the step. (Your local hardware/building supply store should be able to help you pick a material suitable for exterior use and your climate.) The key issues in keeping it durable will be to make sure the surfaces are clean, make sure there is adequate coverage and contact area with the adhesive between the pavers and the step and make sure the bonding material has adequate time to set/cure before stepping on the pavers.
Good luck.

I think this is a good approach. I cut down the pavers today to not exceed the left and right edges so they can no longer be used as a lever when stood on. The next thing I will try to do it adhere them properly to the concrete. What mortar do you recommend for this?

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