How To Pour A Concrete Slab
Thoroughly dampen the gravel. Start placing the concrete at one corner of the form while a helper uses a shovel or hoe to spread it .
Pour the concrete up against the form and compact it into all corners with a square shovel or mortar hoe with a hoe, push- don’t drag the concrete. But don’t overwork the concrete, and don’t spread it too far overworking will force the heavy aggregate to the bottom of the slab and will bring up small particles that can cause defects in the finished DIY concrete patio. Instead, space out your placement along the form, placing each batch against the previous batch to fill the form.
If you plan to leave the dividers in place, finish, and cure the concrete in alternating sections. Once they’ve cured for at least three days, remove the stakes from inside of the remaining sections and complete them.
Install The Wood Floor
To install the wood floor, follow the steps below:
Can You Resurface A Concrete Porch
Concrete patios with minor damage, but in otherwise good condition, can be transformed with concrete resurfacing. Instead of starting over with a new patio, you can upgrade its appearance and strength with a cement -based overlay. Your resurfaced concrete patio can be stamped, stained, or stenciled and have color added.
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Lay Down The Flagstone & Make A Rough Layout
First, design a rough layout for your flagstone piece by setting them down on the patio.
This will give you an idea of where each stone will go before you get started. Make sure you choose the top side of the stones to ensure smoothness and better visual appeal overall.
Putting the underside on top is also a safety hazard if you stub your toes, trip, or fall while walking around the patio after finishing the job. Trim the stones around the patio edges using a mortar hammer or a circular saw to ensure they dont hang over and look unsightly.
What Can I Cover My Concrete Patio With
similarly, How do you make an old concrete patio look new?
3 Ways to Make Old Concrete Look New Again
in the same way, Is paint or stain better for concrete? When properly applied, the paint will last a long time without chipping or peeling and can also help hide imperfections or patch work on top of the concrete. In comparison, acid stain actually permeates the pores of the concrete and interacts with different components of the concrete.
likewise Can you pour new concrete over old cracked concrete?
You can put new concrete over old concrete. However, unresolved issues with your old concrete, such as cracks or frost heaves, will carry over to your new concrete if not taken care of. In addition, you must pour it at least 2 inches thick.
Is it better to paint or stain concrete patio?
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Best Colors For Outdoor Concrete Patios
One of the best parts of these newer outdoor concrete patio paints is that you can get them in every color of the rainbow. A great patio paint like PPGs Portercrete Exterior Concrete Finish System can be tinted to the exact color you specify.
We recommend painting your outdoor concrete patio in a color that matches your lifestyle, decor and intended use for the space. If you want a patio that looks clean and simple, standard gray is a good bet. If youd like your outdoor concrete patio to fade into your landscape more, a modern rust color can give the patio an earthy-look without drawing the eye to it too closely.
We really enjoy when clients introduce a pop of color to their outdoor space with their outdoor concrete patio color. Deeper saturated jewel tones work well on a slab, especially when they coordinate with your homes exterior color. Weve also seen clients add a modern and stately vibe to their outdoor space when they paint their outdoor concrete patio a deep charcoal color.
A few things to note about outdoor concrete patio paint colors:
- Like all colors in the outdoors, dark colors will absorb heat, light colors will reflect it.
- Lighter colors may show wear and tear and foot paths more readily than darker colors.
- Trendy colors may look dated over the next decade.
- Always consider if you want a second different color that is a border color around the edge of your concrete patio.
How To Install Pavers Over A Concrete Patio Without Mortar
I have a small poured concrete patio, and that Id like to cover with brick pavers. Can I do this without using mortar?
According to several paver manufacturers, paving blocks can be installed on top of concrete without mortar if you first lay down a 1/2 to 1 bed of coarse sand. The process is nearly identical to laying a paver patio over ground.
However, this type of installation should be done with caution, since drainage, settling, and cracking can be a problem. Keep these tips in mind when laying pavers over a concrete patio:
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Stain A Pattern Into The Concrete
This is such an easy tip. You can purchase a product that allows you to redo your concrete patio in a new color. You can do the entire area in the new color or you can tape off areas to create a pattern. For example, if your patio is gray, you could do a charcoal gray stain over the light gray to create a beautiful pattern. You can also use stencils. You can even use two different colors of stain, if you like.
Heres a good tutorial: How to Stain Concrete
Lay Down Fabric & Make A Flat Bed Of Sand
Lay down some landscape fabric first to ensure the sand wont get washed down into cracks. Then position the screed pipe before spreading the sand. Flatten the sand using a piece of wood before using a plate compactor to ensure the sand is flush with the border. A 2x6in piece of wood is often good enough to serve as the screeding tool. This part of the project is difficult and may require you to enlist extra help.
You may be wondering why its best to use sand instead of just gluing all the pavers down. Think about the length of time itd take to glue everything down and the extra cost youre sure to spend on adhesive.
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What Can I Use For Concrete Overlay
They include:
The Best Time To Paint Your Concrete Patio
Like any paint job, good timing and fastidious prep work is key. Choose a time of year in your region when the temperature isnt too cold or hot or the weather too wet. The paint can will have the proper temperature range listed.
You might have some wiggle room with these high and low temperatures, depending on the type of paint you use but these general guidelines hold. That means for most folks, youll be able to paint an outdoor concrete patio throughout the year, with the exception of very cold winter days or very hot direct sun summer days.
You will want to paint your concrete patio outside of your regions wet season. Rain or snow will affect how the paint adheres to the concrete and how it dries, so choose a time of year when you know youll have proper dry time. The side of the paint can label will usually provide dry times to touch and to walk on. If youre painting a covered outdoor concrete patio, or a garage floor, you can paint if its wet out, just make sure water cant leak onto the slab and ruin your work.
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Tools And Resources For Installing Concrete Alternatives
TOOLS & MATERIALS
These are products that I found through doing some internet research. I have only used one myself, Klingstone Paths. I cant speak to the quality of the others, but wanted to compile a list of options for you. Please be sure to do your own investigating as well.
What Is The Cheapest Way To Cover A Concrete Patio
Cover Your Concrete Patio Ideas
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How Do You Resurface A Pool Deck
Concrete overlays can be sprayed on or trowel applied to most sound concrete surfaces. Some systems can also be stamped or stenciled, allowing you to achieve the same patterns possible with new concrete.
Here are the steps you can expect when your contractor is resurfacing your pool deck:
Tip: Some coatings are formulated to dry quickly, making it possible to give a pool deck a decorative makeover in as little as a day.
How To Cover A Concrete Patio With Spray Paint
Finally, First Home Love Life updated her front entry with a stepping stone mold and spray paint! Easy alternative to stamping concrete!
We hope you loved these DIY patio cover up ideas! Check out our post 9 DIY Cool & Creative Patio Flooring Ideas for more great ideas, projects and tutorials! You also may love our post on Patio Privacy Screens!
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Can You Put Epoxy Coating On Concrete Patio
You want to apply an epoxy coating or a concrete stain to your concrete garage floor or patio, for example. Many products claim that you can do it yourself but do they tell the whole story? We have mentioned before that preparation for an epoxy coating or concrete staining is key. Most failures occur due to improper prep of the floor.
Bonding New Cementitious Layer Over Existing Aggregate
This can work, but it is non-trivial and involves some steps. The existing aggregate must be adequately bonded into the existing cement to allow the steps involved . If the existing surface is robust enough, it needs to be cleaned and acid-etched before applying the new cementitious layer. Check out this forum post for more details.
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Option Five: Add Pavers
Add pavers or stone on top of the existing aggregate. While most contractors say remove and start again, others say that as long as the structural integrity of the current slab is ok, you can use the exposed aggregate as the base to add on dry-laid or mortared stone or pavers.
With this approach, an important element to remember is that the original exposed aggregate is probably already at the height required, so make sure you account for as much as a 3 and 1/2 inch increase in height or the area. This is important to consider for existing stairs and doors etc.
The pros for this approach is that its the most budget conscious and time effective approach. The cons are that because aggregate is below ground level, there will always be a slight problem with water seeping out of seams of the pavers due to surface run-off on the concrete below.
Add Curves With Pavers
A square concrete slab is standard, but you can add curves around your concrete patio with the help of pavers. For instance, you could add a half circle to one side to create a fire pit area. Or use pavers to border off a circular garden at one corner of your patio.
You can see how we added a curved retaining wall during our backyard patio project, plus a matching fire pit.
This is such a pretty way to make over a concrete patio.
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Is It Better To Paint Or Stain A Concrete Patio
Summer is the perfect time to enjoy your yard and host a barbecue or two on your concrete patio. You can upgrade with new patio furniture and planting fresh blooms around the backyard, but the best way to wow your summer guests is to add a concrete coating to your patio. If you already have a cement patio, you have two main options for concrete coatings. Both are beautiful and functional options, but you may find one suits your tastes better.
How Do You Attach Concrete To Old Concrete
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Create A Container Garden
Last, but not least a container garden is an easy way to bring color to your concrete patio. You can line the patio in beautiful planters filled with your favorite flowers, evergreens, and plants. Youll be surprised at how beautiful your patio can be with this simple tip.
There are so many things you can do to update your patio. Whether you refinish the wood to restore the look or add interest to the railing, youll love the new look of your patio.
Check out some of my other posts on UPDATINGinstead of replacing:
Striking The Diy Concrete Patio
Move a strikeoff across the form to level the concrete. On large jobs, do this batch-by-batch, rather than after all the cement is placed. Move the board slowly along the form, using a side-to-side, sawing motion be sure to make two passes. Even on narrow forms, two people will make the work faster and more efficient. If necessary, a third person can shovel extra concrete into any corners to save time.
Smoothing concrete patio surface
If you’re working on a very small walkway leading to your patio, you can skip this step.) After striking off, use a darby or bull float-depending on the size of your project-for the initial finishing, to smooth down high spots and fill small hollows left after striking off.
Use the darby on small DIY concrete projects. Move it in overlapping arcs, then repeat with overlapping straight, side-to-side strokes. Keep the tool flat, don’t let it dig in. For larger jobs, use a bull float . Push it away from you with its leading edge raised slightly. Pull it back nearly flat overlap your passes.
Edging concrete
Giving your Do It Yourself concrete slab or sidewalk a curved edge will help it resist chipping and prevent stub-toes or tripping accidents. To edge the cement, begin by running a mason’s trowel between the concrete and the outer edges of the slab form . Follow with an edger . Run it back and forth to smooth and compact the concrete. Unless the tool has a toboggan end, raise the leading edge slightly as you move it.
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