Making concrete steps...?

[The Z'eer]

What I've done in the past is wrap the form work in visqueen so you get a lovely smooth finish to the vertical face, the easiest way I've found is to pull the visqueen tight around the wood formwork and staple it in place anywhere except the face that will be against the concrete.

I did that with the membrane on the main slab, purely by chance was the result since I lined the formwork by mistake.

 

[The Z'eer]

What he said; put a blunt drill bit in the drill, place a lump of metal against the formwork and attempt to drill it with the hammer action running.

Lovely cheers for the tip, I'll use that!

 

[tlovatt]

Be aware if you add more water to the mix you need to add more cement to maintain the strength, you want a reasonable cement content to stop the edges damaging easily. I would also add you are probably better off with a brushed finish rather than the nice smooth finish some are advocating- smooth steps are not good in winter!

Leave the formwork in place until the concrete has partly cured then finish off with a trowel to get a smooth surface without aggregates, then brush with a stiff brush (such as an outdoor broom) then re-trowel a small smooth edge around the sides and put a bull nose on the leading edge for a good looking finish that will have some texture so not be as slippery when wet.

 

[The Z'eer]

Be aware if you add more water to the mix you need to add more cement to maintain the strength, you want a reasonable cement content to stop the edges damaging easily. I would also add you are probably better off with a brushed finish rather than the nice smooth finish some are advocating- smooth steps are not good in winter!

Leave the formwork in place until the concrete has partly cured then finish off with a trowel to get a smooth surface without aggregates, then bursh with a stiff brush (such as an outdoor broom) then re-trowel a small smooth edge around the sides and put a bull nose on the leading edge for a good looking finish that will have some texture so not be as slippery when wet.

The intention is for a brushed finish for reasons as you stated. Thanks for the info with regards to trowelling, I'm extending my trowelling range as we speak With regards to a wet mix could I add say an extra 1/2 ratio of cement i.e a 2.5 to 4 ballast for stronger mix?

 

[tlovatt]

Oh and one other thought - if they are in an exposed area, you may need to protect the steps from the frost for a few days, the concrete setting will generate a bit of heat, but putting some plastic over the top and some insulation should protect it from damage for 5 or 6 days after you have poured it - depends what you have to hand but straw is the go to cheap material for building sites

 

[tlovatt]

The intention is for a brushed finish for reasons as you stated. Thanks for the info with regards to trowelling, I'm extending my trowelling range as we speak With regards to a wet mix could I add say an extra 1/2 ratio of cement i.e a 2.5 to 4 ballast for stronger mix?

You have 2 ratios to consider, cement to ballast but also cement to water. Cement generally requires 1/3 of its weight in water to fully cure but as you go over this the resulting concrete becomes weaker - so if you add extra water add something like twice the weight (of the water) of cement can be added as a very rough rule to compensate. Also be mindful that the more cement you add the more difficult it is to work the concrete mix - although this can be overcome by adding plasticiser, a lack of available plasticiser can be overcome by a squirt of washing up liquid (but not too much)!

If the foundations are strong enough then the main area of concern is the edges as they are the easiest to break off - using bull noses helps to avoid this as well as looking good

 

[The Z'eer]

You have 2 ratios to consider, cement to ballast but also cement to water. Cement generally requires 1/3 of its weight in water to fully cure but as you go over this the resulting concrete becomes weaker - so if you add extra water add something like twice the weight (of the water) of cement can be added as a very rough rule to compensate. Also be mindful that the more cement you add the more difficult it is to work the concrete mix - although this can be overcome by adding plasticiser, a lack of available plasticiser can be overcome by a squirt of washing up liquid (but not too much)!

If the foundations are strong enough then the main area of concern is the edges as they are the easiest to break off - using bull noses helps to avoid this as well as looking good

Thanks for the info I have been using an edging trowel, as you say the sharp 90 degree edges are easily chipped.

 

[tlovatt]

Hope they come out well