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Thread: What's inside my concrete stoops?

  1. #1
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    What's inside my concrete stoops?

    On my 1941 concrete block house are two concrete stoops, about 3 ft by 4 ft and about 14 inches above grade. "Someday" I might replace them, so I wonder how much trouble they would be to demolish. What would be inside them? I hope that the whole stoop isn't solid concrete. Is it likely that the builders made something out of concrete block and poured the slab over it? The sides show poured concrete, not block.

  2. #2
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    I used to work with my FIL when I was younger and we came across everything from solid concrete to dirt. The worst was removing steps that were solid concrete, hardest stuff I ever jack hammered. Most old concrete isn't that bad but you never know, they may have even put in rebar.

  3. #3
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    Most old concrete isn't that bad but you never know, they may have even put in rebar.
    or Jimmy Hoffa......

  4. #4
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    The stoops on my house contain construction debris around which a form had been made and then the concrete poured and finished. They became severely unleveled at one point. I dugout underneath a small area of the one at my front step, threw gravel in the hole and tamped it with a 1" steel bar and was able to re-level it rather than remove and replace it. I actually raised it about 2" on the east side to level it.
    Last edited by Ken Fitzgerald; 06-05-2011 at 12:11 PM.
    Ken

    So much to learn, so little time.....

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by Ken Fitzgerald View Post
    The stoops on my house contain construction debris around which a form had been made and then the concrete poured and finished.
    This is a common practice to get rid of broken bricks and blocks.
    Army Veteran 1968 - 1970
    I Support the Second Amendment of the US Constitution

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by Stephen Tashiro View Post
    What's inside my concrete stoops?
    . . . . Jimmy Hoffa.
    "A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".


    – Samuel Butler

  7. #7
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    Contact a concrete cutting company and have them bring the big guns if it proves to be solid. Shouldn't cost too much and saves a lot of wear and tear on the body.

  8. #8
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    If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

    Will Rogers knew of what he spoke.

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  9. #9
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    My dad filled the hollow areas with rocks that were readily available on our property. I use sand because I have lots of it available on my property.
    David B

  10. #10
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    I removed a concrete stoop from the front of my house and a 12x20'pad from the back. I rented an electric jackhammer(concrete buster) from home depot and it took a day to do but really wasn't that big a deal. the pad in back turned out to be 11-12" thick but no rebar.
    Steve Jenkins, McKinney, TX. 469 742-9694
    Always use the word "impossible" with extreme caution

  11. #11
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    Manassas VA
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    I would guess that building supplies were scarce and expensive in 1941.
    As others have already said, it would be likely to be filled with debris of some sort
    The wisest thing in the world is to cry out before you are hurt.

    Board-Stretcher 101 : I cut it twice and it's still too short. I don't understand?

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