How to Install Concrete Block Stairs

Use concrete blocks to build temporary stairs outside your home.

Large concrete blocks or cinder blocks often get used or reused in making temporary outdoor stairs and steps. This temporarily staircase is installed on site and can be taken apart to use the blocks elsewhere, or affixed permanently by filling and covering the block with mixed concrete. Blocks are stacked into the form of a staircase, a process easy for anyone capable of lifting the blocks, and will require only a few hours of time to complete, depending upon the required size of the stairs.

Things You'll Need

• Shovel
• Level
• Concrete mix
• Water
• Wheelbarrow
• Concrete trowel

Instructions

1. Dig a level spot in which to place the concrete block stairs; the site should ideally be located in front of a door or the end of a porch. Dig only as much as necessary to create a level spot in the width and length of the future staircase and then check the spot with a level.

2. Place the concrete blocks into the space, starting at the back of the staircase, which should sit directly below the ledge of a porch or door. Fill the entire dug-out space with block, laying all the block pointing in one direction, with the holes of each block facing upward.

3. Set in the next layer of the staircase. Begin at the back of the case again and work forward, laying the blocks to point perpendicularly to the blocks in the previous step; staggering the blocks in this way will make the temporary stairs sturdier. Keep the holes of the block facing upward. Stop placing this second layer once you are approximately 10 inches short of the first layer.

4. Place layers on top of the previous layer. Each layer will start at the back of the stairs and stop 10 inches short of covering the previous later. Point the blocks of each layer perpendicular to the previous layer and with the holes pointing upward; stop building and adding layers once the top layer is equal to or less than 8 inches below the door jamb or porch surface.

5. Mix a batch of concrete mix with water in a wheelbarrow. Using the wheelbarrow will keep the mix close to you and portable for adding more water or dumping out the concrete.

6. Fill the exposed holes in the concrete blocks with wet concrete. Scoop concrete onto the trowel and pour into the holes of the blocks; with each new layer, apply more concrete to fill the holes. Allow the filled holes to dry. As the concrete dries, it will shift and lower, more fully filling the holes below in previous layers.

7. Apply more concrete to fill in the remaining space at the tops of each hole, to create a smooth surface at the top of each step. Use the trowel to smooth the concrete over the top of each step.

Resources

• All Things Concrete: How to Pour Concrete Steps