Pouring A New Concrete Stoop

[DerbyDad03]

The plan is to repair my front stoop as follows.

1 - Remove the brick veneer from the front and sides of my 4' x 6' x 14" stoop 2 - Bust up the slab 3 - Bust up the single 6' x 13" x 7" step

This should leave me with the block foundation that is under the stoop. I've already removed a few bricks so I know that there is block and a footer underneath.

4 - Build forms for the sides and step 5 - Pour new sides, slab and step, all as one pour. 6 - We're undecided on stamped concrete vs. porcelain tile, but leaning towards stamped concrete. It's cheaper and should not present any maintenance issues like tile might.

So, here are my questions, as I try to calculate how much concrete I'll need:

1 - What's the minimum thickness the slab should be? 2 - What's the minimum thickness the side and front walls should be? 3 - The step (6' x 13" x 7") should be poured as a single, solid unit, right? (no blocks) 4 - Since walls and slab will be done as one pour, I don't have to be concerned with wire mesh or anything on the block, do I? Would it help or just be overkill? 5 - Should I use rebar or welded wire frame in the side walls?

[hrhofmann]

where are yuo located, frost may influence answers?

[Joe]

Some of the building codes in your community may be helpful in planning the best way to proceed. Just stop by city hall and ask for the info. If the inspectors are typical, they can give you a lot of practical tips.

Joe

[DerbyDad03]

I'm located where we have winter from as early as November to as late as April. Winter includes zero temps and lots of snow.

[DerbyDad03]

The 3 main issues are these:

1 - The brick veneer (what I like to call "multi-colored Italian style=94, 16" x 3" x 2" pink, green, orange, etc. ) is in pretty bad shape. The edges where you step up to the stoop are deteriorating, The mortar is cracked in more than a few spots where they border the slab and on the risers.

2 - The slab for the step has cracked and dropped down about 1/2" below the brick edging causing a trip hazard. I have leveled the step with concrete resurfacer to eliminate the hazard, but obviously that's just temporary.

The top slab itself is intact with no cracks, only the mortar for the brick edging is falling out. The mortar on the 14" side walls appears to be in good shape so I don't think the stoop itself is sinking due to a bad foundation.

3 - Over the past few years I've replaced the entry door, storm door, roof and gutters. Besides being in disrepair, the stoop is 1950-ish butt ugly. We will eventually be pulling the bushes and re-landscaping across the front of the house but the stoop has to be dealt with before winter. The mortar has been deteriorating for years and every winter it gets worse.

Obviously, once I pull the brick and break up the slab, I'll make sure the underlying foundation is in good enough shape to support the new poured stoop. As far as I can tell at this point, it's mostly a mortar and appearance issue.

I'm still looking for answers as to how thick the slab and walls should be.

BTW...the following would be a nice look if I can get the form liners and stamps at a reasonable cost for a single job. Maybe put them on Craigslist afterwards. Scroll to about 1:45 left to see the finishing steps.

[Doug]

You got me to thinking where I once lived in Flushing, we lived in a fourplex and the front stoop was shared for both bottom front doors and must have been (I'm guessing since I never measured) about 12 foot wide with all brick on the wearing surface. I'd hate to have to rebuild that stoop. As I recall in all the years I was there, it never showed any signs of wear or at least not noticeable. I don't recall when the house was built but I'm guessing very late 40's to early 50's and I lived there from mid 60's on. We also had abestos lined pipes and furnace in the basement (finished basement) where I slept.

[trader4]

Thanks for sharing that. Those form liners are neat. A friend of mine has some steps that will need repair at some point. They might be a good idea for that.

[DerbyDad03]

And yet I still don't have a single answer to any of my questions. :-(

[trader4]

- Hide quoted text -

While I'm no expert on concrete here's my two cents:

1 - What's the minimum thickness the slab should be?

2" should do. If it doesn't create any issues, ie height problems, etc, then you could do more and I would as it can only help.

2 - What's the minimum thickness the side and front walls should be?

They frequently just porage the front of the blocks without doing a pour so I don't think thickness there is critical. If you want to do a pour, I think the limiting factor is going to be a form of sufficient thickness so that you can get the concrete in. I'd say that's probably 1" ?

3 - The step (6' x 13" x 7") should be poured as a single, solid unit, right? (no blocks)

Yes, that's how I would do it.

4 - Since walls and slab will be done as one pour, I don't have to be concerned with wire mesh or anything on the block, do I? Would it help or just be overkill?

Using mesh or rebar isn't a function of the number of pours. It's added to increase the ability of the concrete to withstand forces. Since it's just a step, I would not use wire as I would think it;s overkill.

5 - Should I use rebar or welded wire frame in the side walls?

Same as above. That concrete isn't carrying any significant load or being exposed to any high stress. If anything fails, it's going to be more likely to be because the foundation of the whole thing sinks.