How to Build a Front-Entry Landing Stoop

Add a decorative touch to your stoop by cementing bricks to the outside edge.

A front entry stoop typically is a concrete surface or platform level with the house entry, and provides you with a place to stand when opening the door into your home. Build a landing stoop with a little help from your friends and a few supplies from the local hardware or home improvement store. The task takes a week or more to complete because the cement has to cure.

Things You'll Need

• Shovel
• Framing lumber
• Drill
• 3-inch screws
• Cement
• Wheel barrow
• Plastic

Instructions

1. Measure up to below the entry door sill to determine the height you need for the landing stoop.

2. Dig out the area for the stoop down to a depth of 4 inches into the soil.

3. Build a frame to hold the poured cement. Use wood boards that are tall enough to fill the sides of the 4-inch hole plus the height the stoop. Drill 3-inch screws through the ends of the boards to create the frame.

4. Set up rebar supports along the sides of the frame 3 inches from the boards. Put the supports 18 inches apart. In addition, place supports in the middle of the form.

5. Lay rebar on the supports in one direction, and then at a perpendicular angle. Use twist ties at the points where the bars cross each other to keep them in place.

6. Mix the cement based on the bag directions in a wheelbarrow.

7. Pour the cement into the stoop frame.

8. Move a board across the frame to level it off. Let the cement stoop dry until you no longer see a wet shine to the surface.

9. Lay a plastic cover over the cement and leave it for a day. Lift the material the next day and spray it with water. Repeat each day for one to two weeks.

10. Remove the plastic and take down the frame.

References

• Reliable Remodeler: How to Build a Cement Porch
• One Project Closer; How to Build a Concrete Porch/Stoop (Framing, Mixing, Pouring Concrete); July 2008