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Desperate Landscape: Help on Hulbert Avenue Landscaping pro Jason Cameron helps a single mom brighten a drab home exterior with new shutters, porch steps and lots of living color. From "Desperate Landscapes" episode DDSL-201

(Continued from page 1)

Project 1: Sidewalk Repair

Part of Kristina's sidewalk is broken and needs to be replaced. To repair the sidewalk, Jason uses a cut-off saw to break up the concrete for easier removal. A concrete saw can be rented for about $50 daily.

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Tips for using a concrete saw:

• Safety Alert: When using a concrete saw, make sure to wear eye protection (figure A). A dust mask is also recommended.

• Use a little forward pressure to push blade through concrete (figure B). Do not force it.

• Once concrete is cut, use a sledgehammer to break up the rest of the pieces.

  Figure A

  Figure B

  
  

Kristina's house has some unsightly wood steps leading up to the front porch. Jason's plan calls for replacing them with concrete steps. Before you can pour concrete, you need to build forms.

Before

After

Figure C

• For this job, we used 3/4" sheets of plywood cut to the proper dimensions.

• We used risers for the face. We used a 2x8 with a 45-degree angle on one end for finishing (figure C).

• Use stakes to keep forms in place.
  

  Figure D

• Drill holes into foundation install rebar to ensure the steps stay attached to foundation (figure D).

• Tip: Coat the inside of the form with oil or diesel fuel for ease of removal.
  

• Fill the form with concrete chunks to save money on the concrete pour. We used chunks of concrete from our sidewalk removal (figures E and F).

• Note: We also built a form for our sidewalk repair and used rebar to connect it to the existing walkway.

  Figure E

  Figure F

  
  

  	Figure G
  	Figure H
  	Figure I

We opted to have concrete delivered rather than spend a lot of time mixing our own concrete (figures G and H). It costs about $85 to $95 for one yard of concrete. (Price varies from region to region.) Our job required three yards.

• Sometimes concrete companies have a minimum how much you have to buy

• To avoid making a mess in the planting beds, we used wheelbarrows to take the concrete directly to our forms.

• Finish concrete with a mage and use an edger to finish the outside edge (figure I).

• Concrete doesn't harden when dry as commonly thought. Concrete actually needs water to harden. The process is called hydration.

• By keeping the concrete cool, you slow the curing time which means harder concrete. If it cures too quickly, the concrete can get stress cracks.

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