tkostal
03-16-2004, 10:11 PM
Looking for opinions and advice. I am remodeling a porch and am rebuilding the stairs. The budget is tight so its DIY! I would love to have solid limestone steps installed but I may only be able to afford limestone treads with a brick veneer for the risers. My idea was to create "stringers" out of cinder blocks that would allow me to set the treads on top and apply reclaimed brick faces to hide the cinder blocks on the rises and on the sides of the steps.
There would be 5 treads with the last step being the porch deck. I want them to be 5 feet wide so I figure at least 3, possibly 4 stringers would be necessary to provide support for the 1-2" thick treads. The steps will land on a sidewalk of pavers laid on a 3-4" concrete pad I poured last fall. I'm guessing I will have to pull some of that up to provide for a footing down to the frost line. I've laid some brick in the past but never cinder block and never in a unique arrangement such as a stringer. What would be the best way to provide for the correct dimensions. I can either precut the blocks before laying them OR create a"wall" just larger than the stringers need to be and then create a template to mark the wall and then cut it down to size with a circular saw. If you have a better idea, please post it.
Would there be any need to support the span of the limestone between the stringers? If so, would treated lumber anchored to the blocks be enough? And most importantly, what beer would you recommend after completing a hard day of such work?
But seriously, I'm still flushing this one out so don't hesitate to add your 2 cents. Thanks.
There would be 5 treads with the last step being the porch deck. I want them to be 5 feet wide so I figure at least 3, possibly 4 stringers would be necessary to provide support for the 1-2" thick treads. The steps will land on a sidewalk of pavers laid on a 3-4" concrete pad I poured last fall. I'm guessing I will have to pull some of that up to provide for a footing down to the frost line. I've laid some brick in the past but never cinder block and never in a unique arrangement such as a stringer. What would be the best way to provide for the correct dimensions. I can either precut the blocks before laying them OR create a"wall" just larger than the stringers need to be and then create a template to mark the wall and then cut it down to size with a circular saw. If you have a better idea, please post it.
Would there be any need to support the span of the limestone between the stringers? If so, would treated lumber anchored to the blocks be enough? And most importantly, what beer would you recommend after completing a hard day of such work?
But seriously, I'm still flushing this one out so don't hesitate to add your 2 cents. Thanks.