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Here you will find a step by step list of the top 3 construction
jobs for improving your home!
Garden Bench:
TOOLS: MATERIALS:
• Circular Saw • Two Large Feather Rocks
• Hammer • Three 2x6x8 Redwood Boards
• Chisel • Two 2x2 Redwood Boards cut to 15 inches long
• Hand Broom • Wood Screws
• Shop Brush • Tarp
STEP 1:
Seat your two feather rocks. Seat the feather rocks firmly in the ground (approx. 5-6 feet apart, depending on the width of the rocks).
STEP 2:
Cut the top off of each rock. Using your multi-purpose electric saw, remove the top of each rock, making a smooth and level surface. If the surfaces created are not level, or not level with each other, the rock can be adjusted by simply adding or subtracting soil beneath the base.
STEP 3:
Cut a channel into each surface. Using one of the 2x2 pieces of redwood, mark on each rock top where the channel will be cut. Using your saw, cut along the lines. Next, use a hammer and cold chisel to gently tap and remove the rock from inside the channel.
STEP 4:
Build your redwood seat. Lay your 2x6 redwood boards side by side, being sure the ends are even. Connect the boards, using the two 2x2s (Remember the 2x2s should fit firmly into the channels in the rock. Keep this in mind when spacing). To prevent sharp corners, the end of the outer boards can be rounded.
STEP 5:
Place the seat on the rocks. Now all that's left is placing the seat in the rocks. If your seat doesn't match up, simply move the rocks accordingly.
Presto! Your done.
Stone Stairway:
TOOLS: MATERIALS:
• Spade • Large pieces of Flagstone
• Shovel • Bricks
• Level
STEP 1:
Plan your stairway. Determine the length your stairway needs to be. Approximate the number of stairs you will need. This will assist you in determining the number of stones and risers to purchase.
STEP 2:
Lay your first (or bottom) stone. When creating the steps, there are two important things to remember. First, be sure that your risers, as well as your stones are level. Secondly, be sure that the back of each step is setting securely on solid ground. You may have to shave off some soil to either level or secure the stones. The first step is the most important. If it is not level, the following steps will not be level. It is also a good idea to use two layers of bricks on the first step. This will provide additional support.
STEP 3:
Continue your steps upward. Be sure to keep steps level and supported as your ascend your slope.
STEP 4:
Double check steps for stability. After completing your stairway, check each step for wobble. Additional bricks can be used to level and steady wobbling steps.
Now you are finished!
Walkway:
TOOLS: MATERIALS:
• Claw Hammer • Quikrete Fiber-Reinforced Concrete
• Trowel • Line Level
• Wheelbarrow • Wooden Stakes
• Electric Shovel • Expansion Joints
• Mixing Tool • Wood Forms
• Broom
• Tape Measure
STEP 1:
Determine how long and how wide you want your walkway to be. After you have measured the width, drive a stake into the ground on both sides of where you will begin, these stakes will be your reference points for the remainder of the project.
STEP 2:
Attach a screw to the lower third of the first stake. Use a line level to make sure you have got the proper angle of drainage away from the house.
STEP 3:
Take one end of the string, attach it to the screw you have installed on the first stake, drive a second stake at the end of your proposed walkway. Attach the other end of the string to this stake and check to make sure that you will have proper drainage. In other words, you do not want the bubble to show level, you want there to be a slight slope away from the house. (Failure to make sure water will drain away from your house could later cause foundation problems.)
STEP 4:
Next, use a shovel, to dig out the area of your walk. Once this is done, sink a stake about every two feet on both sides of the cut-out ground where your walkway will go. Then take 3 feet x 4 inch pieces of plywood and attach them at ground level to the stakes. These pieces of wood are your concrete forms which will hold the cement in place when you are ready to pour the walkway.
STEP 5:
First, put in your expansion joints. Expansion joints are installed about every three feet and are used to keep your concrete from cracking during expansion and contraction in hot and cold weather.
STEP 6:
Now, mix your concrete in a wheelbarrow.
STEP 7:
Pour the walkway into the forms. Use a trowel to smooth it out and make sure you have a nice even finish.
STEP 8:
After the concrete has thoroughly dried (usually five days), remove the outer forms and stakes.
Now you have got a beautiful walkway.
