Building a porch with our own hands

Is it difficult to build a porch with your own hands? If you have already built a house that needs it, then no. If the house has been standing for a long time, and only the porch needs reconstruction, then it is necessary to delve into some subtleties of work. Usually the choice of material for the porch is dictated by the material of the building. For a frame house it is better to build a wooden porch with your own hands, and a brick is more suitable stone and concrete.

Concrete porch with own hands

The first stage of construction is the preparation of the site. If you decide to put a new porch in place of the old one, then pre-disassemble the existing to the base. Under the foundation, a pit is dug about 1 meter deep (70 cm in regions with high groundwater and 1.5 meters in northern regions with severe winters), 20 cm is covered by a sand cushion on top of which the formwork is mounted and flooded with cement mortar.

There is also an easier way to prepare the site: the ground layer is only 15-20 cm removed and crushed stone is poured into the groove, sand is poured on top and watered with water so that it settles in between the stones. Sprinkle as many times as necessary to fill all the slots. After that, you can concrete the steps.

To the porch, made by hand, was strong and reliable, the formwork is mounted separately for each step. After the solution of the first of them has solidified, crushed stone and sand fall into the interior of the structure. Then the formwork is moved to a higher level to fill the next step, and so to the full availability of the ladder.

To ensure that the corners do not break, they are strengthened with metal corners, which need to be drowned in the concrete that has not completely stopped. Decorate the finished porch with your own hands with a non-slip ceramic tile, designed for outdoor use. Excellent choice will be porcelain stoneware.

The upper porch area should be a few centimeters (about 5) below the door level. The railing can be made of brick or metal, only it is necessary to use more comfortable material for rails, better wood.

Wooden porch

How to build a porch with your own hands for a wooden house? For a frame structure or a frame, you first need to carefully calculate everything, prepare the material that you will use for work. The tree should be as strong as possible, because it will be on the street. Therefore, coniferous species are suitable: larch pine, spruce.

This ladder can be both capital and ladder, but the second option is less reliable. In frost, the earth under it can rise, freezing, and jam the door before the heat comes.

The simplest and most functional option is the construction of a stepped box of boards, which is installed on a concrete pad. The upper part of the structure is supported by beams attached to the wall of the house. All boards located on or under the ground, before installation are impregnated with bitumen or the fulfilled machine oil.

There is also a variant of installing the porch on the Kosovar. The base is similarly a platform of concrete, on which the lower ends of the strips are suitably machined. Instead of concrete it is possible to use a tie, the posts are fastened to it with the help of cuttings. From above they are connected by a support-board, which is attached through several spikes through and through.

The height of the steps should be comfortable for people living in the house. If the family has small children or the appearance of a baby is planned, it is better to make the lift more gentle to ensure safety.

The surface of the steps is impregnated with a drying oil in a few steps, and then varnished for external work. Periodically, the coating needs to be updated to increase several times the life of the new ladder.