Hi,
I have a concrete step that I wish to alter as in the attached photo.
The area in red is concrete I want to cut out.
The area in green is the concrete that is going to be retained - notice that there is a thin layer of concrete left under the removed area. This is because the stone step that is going to be used in place of the removed concrete is not quite tall enough to reach the threshold of the door. Basically there will be one large step at threshold level (the green area at the bottom of the door).
The area in yellow is where the stone step will stick out (it's not as straight as I'd like on the drawing!) as it's wider than the existing step.
Questions:
What's the easiest way to widen the base of the step (the area in green under the existing step)? Pour concrete or use existing concrete slab cut to shape? The extra width is only about 5cm or so and the existing concrete base height is about 5cm above the ground. Would rebar or metal mesh come into play here or can I get away with just pouring concrete without reinforcement or attaching existing concrete slab with just mortar?
It may be that I cut the stone step to fit the existing concrete foundations so I don't need to extend.
I want to remove as much concrete as possible - what's the minimum amount I need to leave around the drainpipe to leave it solidly in place? I will obviously be butting the new stone step up against this drainpipe area so that will provide some stability. The far side of the drainpipe will remain concrete but I'd like to trim that down as well.
The big question! How do I attach the stone step to the remaining concrete? Mortar and rebar or some other solution? If using rebar where will it be placed as it can't be placed horizontally and vertically into the stone step as it'll be impossible to fit (I'm a newbie to this so happy to be told that's wrong!!!!!)
Thanks,
Rich.