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Porches & Decks

Need ideas/help with a small outdoor landing

14 years ago

Hello. My wife and I recently bought a house in Massachusetts and I need to replace a small 4' x 6' landing at the base of the front stairs. The existing 'landing' is essentially 6 concrete rectangles, unmortared which are crumbling away as I type. Removal will take 5 minutes...and I wouldn't be surprised to find nothing but a layer of sand for leveling and a depth of about 2-4 inces dug TOPS. (I judge here by the unfinished nature of some of the previous owner's projects.

So I'm looking for some advice on how to approach replacing this small area. (There is no connecting driveway, walkway or anything else to worry about.)

I have to be pretty budget-conscious here...but would like the area to be stable and able to withstand our brutal winters. For that size area, would it still be recommended to dig to 8", fill with a compacting stone (also keeping in mind that this will probably be the one time I would need to use a tamping tool....so I'm kinda loathe to buy one.) Then fill with sand....set....say cobblestone and then fill with stone dust?

I'm trying to find out what materials and methods I should use to approach this project so that this teeny landing doesn't becoma a major headache.

Any suggestions or ideas would be welcome.

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