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Cutting concrete sills?

mackzully | Posted in General Discussion on November 13, 2007 04:29am

Picked up some nice brand new concrete window sills for $5/ea at a local building salvage, but they’re all about 12″ too long. Outside of renting a gas concrete saw, is there any other recommended/easy way to cut these to length? I was looking at getting a diamond blade for my 10″ chop saw (a horrible freight $99 special) but I didn’t know if I’d simply be wasting my time. The sills are 7.5″ W by 4″ H tapering to 3″H.

Thanks,
Z


Edited 11/12/2007 8:29 pm ET by mackzully

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  1. ponytl | Nov 13, 2007 05:35am | #1

    i cast these all the time  12" wide  8" flat @ 4" thick and then a 4" of taper to 3.5" thick...

    i cast some to the size needed but i also cast 8ft ones to cut as i need them... i put 4or5  # 6 galv wires in each... (cause i have bundels of it)... cast em all bright white   white portland and very white sand... look like stone...

    but u asked about cutting...  i use a 10" diamond blade in either a gas (chainsaw type) saw or and electric one.... prefer the gas one... i get the blades off ebay whatever i get cheap that day... but i usually pay less than $30...  you can use a 7.25 and a ragged out circular saw  and cut from both sides... i keep the cut wet to keep dust down and cool the blade... usually just use a mustard type squirt bottle with someone else squirt'n while i cut... if no one is around  i'll use a coffee can full of water with a nail hole in the side next to the bottom  so it has a steady stream head'n toward the blade.... i cut mine on top of styrofoam so that it's fully supported during the cut keeps anything from breaking before it's time

    good luck.... 

    p

    1. davidmeiland | Nov 13, 2007 06:12am | #2

      Seems like you could use a brick/block saw from the rental place to chop those... either that or find a mason with one of those Imer stone saws, look like a radial arm saw with water flying everywhere.

    2. mackzully | Nov 13, 2007 06:44pm | #5

      Ponytl-
      That's exactly the type of sills I picked up, white, almost stone like appearance, with a very fine grain. Quite nice, and a definite improvement over the reverse sloped quikcrete sills that are currently giving me headaches ;)As for cutting, do you think that I'll kill my 10" sliding compound mitre saw trying to cut these? I guess I do have a surplus of 4.5" HF grinders that I could try without worrying about destroying them.. I'm hesitate to precut them all as each window looks like they're each a little bit different:http://mackzully.smugmug.com/gallery/3817244#220539058Thanks!
      Z

      1. ponytl | Nov 14, 2007 03:05am | #9

        your opening are exactly what i have on my second/third floor  but add another layer of brick...  one outside thats about 1/2 brick in then 2 layers inside of that... most of the windows like that i went ahaed and cut them down to the floor and made them door openings for balconys i hung ...  i ended up building 11" jams and they are trimmed on the inside with what amounts to 1x10's most are in the 114" range high... 8 are double wide this high  and then i have 14 double wide ones on the rear that are only 85" tall or less... aboult half ended up with transoms... my ground floor openings are a brick thicker still....  those puppies eat up a ton of wood...

        takes alot of detail to get them to fit then ancor them so that they won't move.. lots of spray foam to fill the voids... and alot of trim... about every board is a one off cut...

        p

        1. mackzully | Nov 14, 2007 03:16am | #10

          Speaking of anchoring, what do you use? I've had middling success with Tapcons and Redheads, sometimes the brick is so soft it crack or the hole will be too big. I'm convinced that my house is held together purely by gravity and caulk.Z

          1. ponytl | Nov 14, 2007 04:08am | #11

            first i set in the new sills... set level with a slight cant to the outside... i set them proud to the outside by about 1.5"... i cut a small cut in the bottom side of the sill about 1/4" deep and back from the face about 1/2" to act as a drip edge...

            you now have one good surface that is level...

            most of my doors & windows are about 6" narrower than the outer opening... 3" reveal on each side...  so i add a 1x face (face board) to the doors or windows thats about 6" on each side... ( so you look like you have a window that is already trimmed in 1x stock ready to go in a framed hole which we don't have)  3" will be exposed... 3" will be behind your outer brick...  i extend my jams so that they will be the thickness of the inner brick (less the 3/4" you added to the front...  i attach 2x blocks 6 per side on a 112" door opening... these blocks on the above would be 2x6 stock cut the depth of the extended jam these are glued & fastened to the jam and the front face board.... for the top face board i leave it about 1/4 short ( i have cast iron headers that are never level)

            i prime & back prime all of this..... and will even put a coat of paint on the face board... i usually paint the whole exterior of it at this time... easier to paint it flat on horses now than later.....

            now... you can set it in your hole...  if yours are like mine... pushing it against the outer brick will not get you a plumb door or window... if you are 1/4" or less off... way cool... many of mine are as much as 1" in 112"...  i try to get the unit in the best plane i can... and shim it into plane level & square...... where the faceboard meets the brick i use a foam tape applied before i set the unit... this will help seal this joint. i use a 3/8 foam tape 1/2" wide applied to the face board just inside the brick line..this will act as a backer rod for your caulk... if caulk is required... for windows ones i have shimmed to where it is a snug fit... I vulkem(1 part poly caulk) the unit to the concrete sill and then i great stuff foam it into place from the inside...... if your gaps on the outside are mostly less than 1/4" i vulcum both sides to the brick... if your top gap is less than 1/4" i vulcum that to my cast iron header... if it's greater you can add another 1x to the face of your face board pushing it hard to your header...

            once set... the 2x stock blocks you added give you something to attach your interior trim to...  you can add blocks from these out to your brick for a friction fit or add more foam... i screw scraps of 1x to the 2x stock for this if needed... then foam them to the brick...  i fill all voids with fiberglass insulation...  i mill 1x stock for my interior trim... where this trim lays against the brick (if you are leave'n exposed brick inside) i again run the foam tape on the outer edge to help seal the irregular surface... i will finish nail the interior trim to the jam (and glue)  just like always   but i will usually use a screw into the added blocks as far out toward the brick as i can to pull the trim tight to the wall and compress the foam... if you will have furred out drywall walls... just leave your jam proud for the drywall and trim as normal

            a few more steps and fastners for door units... but thats what i do for windows... last few doors took over 40 pieces of wood for each jam assembly with trim closer to 60 if they were transom units...

            good luck... hope you can follow what i wrote and hope it helps

            p

             

            Edited 11/13/2007 8:15 pm ET by ponytl

    3. daaaadeo | Nov 13, 2007 09:46pm | #6

      Do you have  any pics of these sills installed?

      They sound pretty cool?

      Thanks.

      1. ponytl | Nov 14, 2007 02:51am | #8

        i suck at pics  but ... not alot to make'n them i had my sheet metal shop bend the mold/form with lips on each edge and then i just welded a frame around it  with a 3/4 plywood base to keep it all flat i have both ends closed off... but they come out of the mold better if i block off one end a few inches and remove the block after it ... use regular johnsons floor paste wax...

        http://www.att.net/p/s/community.dll?ep=16&groupid=358204&ck=

        that link might work... it's an old picture...  i used the same mold for the tops of the brick walls below the steel rails... where the one balcony is missing you can see one in place (balcony was left off so they could lift drywall thru the opening) you can also see the arched concrete caps on the low wall that i cast... and the concrete curb i ran to form  the planters... also made a mold for the  post caps on the brick posts...

        i like my concrete

        p

         

  2. CAGIV | Nov 13, 2007 06:23am | #3

    a 4 1/2 or 5" angle grinder ought to get you with some time.

    Short of that call a local brick yard and see if they can cut them for you.

    if that doesn't work try calling local CC or CC cutting companies to see what they would charge if you brought them to them

    Team Logo

  3. Steinmetz | Nov 13, 2007 07:03am | #4

    Soak the sills in water for a few days. Use masonry cut off wheels for your Skilsaw ™ Buy several (They wear down after awhile.
    Lay the blanks on a scrap of wet carpet and cut from both sides. As you get close to thE center, you might strike the overhangING piece with a rubber hammer and it will fall off . Important! to keep the wheel cool, use plenty of water. Don't wear good clothes

    Steinmetz.

    1. mackzully | Nov 13, 2007 11:54pm | #7

      I just found a couple of packages of masonry cutoff wheels for my angle grinder. Must have been on sale at HF ;) I'll give those a try and see how many of them I can burn through before I get sick of changing wheels.Thanks for tips!
      Z

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