Trust contractor wanting to build wooden porch with no concrete first step?
mr_pibb
| Posted in Construction Techniques on
Contractor charging ~5k for new front porch. Told me that it’s “better” to replace existing bottom concrete step with wooden step. Nothing I’ve read anywhere supports this opinion, so I thought I’d see what your opinions are. Thanks!
Replies
Without any further info on this porch,
A concrete base/footing for the stairs to sit on would be where I’d start.
An actual rising first step of concrete? Not in any code or design I’m familiar with.
Thanks Calvin - the contractor's proposal was written in an odd way (..."porch with no first step in concrete"). I'm now waiting on a response from them asking what exactly the first step would be resting on. Maybe a better way of phrasing my question would've been "are there instances when it's better for the first step of a stairway to be resting on the bare ground?" My assumption would be "no", but if that IS what they're proposing, I wanted to be prepared with some facts as to why I did NOT want that. Thanks again for responding, and I'll post back if/when I hear back from them.
A picture of the existing would better shape a response.
It could sit on a pad on grade. Exterior stairs are supposed to have 3’ of landing at the bottom so you don’t step off the last step onto dirt. I usually pour a pad 4’ long so there is a foot for the stringers to rest on. A bottom concrete step is an upgrade I would recommend in a heavy rain or snow area. Maybe your contractor isn’t good with concrete. If you want a concrete step, have your stair guy lay it out, hire a concrete guy and have your carpenter build on that.
Update: they told me that it would sit on the sidewalk, so I gave them the go-ahead. Now that they're done, I'm not so sure I'd agree that it's "sitting on the sidewalk."
Maybe the post will hold it up - I just need to figure out how to prevent water from pooling around the post somehow.
What I see in the picture looks pretty bogus for a new “contractor “ built job.
5 grand must have been what they charged for the beautiful job they did out of your shot.
If they wonder what A-hole said that, feel free to give them my name. After 50 yrs in the trade, maybe my eyes are failing.
You caught me at a bad time.
Thanks Calvin!
The rest of it seems pretty solid, but my understanding is that unless I figure out a way to keep standing water away from the (pressure treated) wood, it's not gonna last more than 10 years or so. As I'm not a pro, I appreciate being able to get validation from someone who IS a pro.
Not sure what my recourse is now, though. I wonder how much I would've regretted attempting this myself. Good thing I have such a huge stack of gold bars sitting in the front yard (right outside the picture) to blow on things like this every few years. :(
“Gold bars”….
What was that address again?
Post looks like it is mounted to a concrete support. (framing connector designed for this purpose) if this concrete support extends from the post to closer to the sidewalk, you may be able to insert a replacement for that treated lumber chunk (technical term I made up) stuck under the stair stringer.
Water runs downhill, so the only way to make sure your post does not sit in water is to make the surface of the ground slope down away from the post.
Depending on the soil composition, it might not be much of an issue.
If you are concerned with the appearance, go for something from the small stone family to look a way you like, and allow water to drain through.
Can't tell if this is in a more urban area.
If so, that sidewalk may not be on the property - do local reg's prohibit construction within the city/town/county right of way?
Is this a permitted project?
The sidewalk (it was supposed to sit on) is my property/responsibility. According to the contractor, the square footage of the porch was below the minimum size to require a permit. Maybe that's something I can research & confirm, though. Thanks!
The sidewalk may be your responsibility with respect to snow removal, leaves, a contribution towards cost of repair/replacement, etc.
But where is your street-side property line?
My main point is:
If reg's prohibit obstructing the sidewalk, some bureaucrat could get snitty about your stair resting on the sidewalk.
Just a thought.
Thanks -
The sidewalk is within the property line. Maybe "walk-way" would've been a better term. And I was able to confirm from the city that a permit wasn't required.
hmmm, I suppose I should rake those leaves.
35 years ago I landed our side door stairs onto a sandstone (salvaged city sidewalk ) patio. 30+ years ago treated framing (forget the initials, but dangerous treatment wood we heard later).
I made up “pads” to cap all wood hitting the stone. Somehow found a pvc composite scraps for the “shoes” sitting on the stone.
Redid the rails and treads a couple years ago and found the treated stringers still in good shape.
This might work for you. PVC “shoes for the bottoms.
The next question would be, why didn’t the contractor consider this?
The pic helps a lot. I had pictured the sidewalk running parallel with the street, not a section of sidewalk perpendicular to the street.
Having the stair stringers bear on top of the sidewalk slab may be okay IF they're P/T wood. If not, the bottom will likely rot in the near future. The connection of the stringers to the porch should be such that a bit of rotation (due to frost action) won't eventually loosen things up.