How to patch and resurface concrete stairs?

[Tim4]

Hi,

Wanting to try and recondition these stairs - a thin concrete layer seems to have worn off exposing a very sandy material underneath (and the steel reinforcement). Was going to patch the holes with Concremate. What should I use to resurface? could I also use concremate to resurface the stairs? Thanks.

[EricL]

Hello @Tim4 

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community. It's sensational to have you join us, and thanks for sharing your question about patching your concrete steps.

It appears that the original concrete steps have been worn away. I'm afraid Concremate will not be enough to cover the damage on your concrete steps. I suggest engaging the services of a professional concrete installer and having your steps assessed in order to determine if the steps can still be patched or if they need to be totally renewed. Since the surface of the steps was very thin, it's hard to tell if the front of the steps are in the same condition.

Let me call on our experienced members @Dave-1 and @Nailbag for their recommendations.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric

[Nailbag]

Hi @Tim4 

Similar to @EricL recommendation to call on a concreter to evaluate the project, but also consider a decent landscaper. Then also consider some form of paving over the top for a more durable finish long term.

Nailbag

[Dave-1]

Good Morning @Tim4 

The steps do look like they have been there for awhile and I was thinking how best to approach it until I saw your last photo with the reo showing....

The cavity behind it actually concerns me the most as it hints that there may be other issues about. Plus the type of concrete (sandy) and teh rust that we can see makes me head towards having officially assessed or replacing them yourself.

If you hit the steps with a flat nosed hammer, do they ring hollow? If they do then there is a cavity behind them and potentially means water has eaten away the soil. If they sound solid then you could target the hollow areas. I keep coming back to the state/age of the steps. Plus how thin they are. 

I would even be tempted to drill through a few horizontal surfaces and vertical ones to see if there is soil behind? Plus how thick they actually are.

Dave

[Tim4]

Thanks Dave,

There’s a few other holes not in the pictures  I could look at and there is soil behind - some sound a little holllow when hit with hammer - definitely been there a while and didn’t realise how many holes till I cleaned all the dirt/moss off. They don’t get much traffic so maybe I’ll just patch the holes for now to buy some time and then get a professional in if they degrade further ?  ( apart from holes etc they are structurally sound for now

Really appreciate the advice from all.

[Dave-1 · Accepted solution]

Good Evening @Tim4 

Id patch the holes as well, id possibly try a cement slurry and actually pour it into the cavitys that you can, then plug with flat timber on the vertical plane (vibrate the step as well). Concrete Mate would work but can be very exensive and sets fast. The concretemate bucket size will work out to be half the concrete volume that it makes up type deal. I was stressing and rushing to do a concrete repair patch on my patio using it. It worked well but woooo was a lot of pressure.

The sandy concrete you describe (and your steps look like) reminds me of my old front path with that same sandy concrete, It held up even with cracks for years. Repair the holes, do some research on building steps and down the track have a go yourself It would be a pretty nice project to have under your belt. Plus the measurements are there all ready for you to copy

Dave

[Tim4]

Thanks again Dave - really appreciate  the advice — will fill holes with slurry as you have suggested and eventually tackle building the steps. Cheers.