Redesigning front porch step

19 years ago

Our house has a concrete porch and driveway, and a short L-shaped walk connecting the two. There is one concrete step leading up to the porch. The soil around the foundation has settled in the 13 years that we've lived here, and the walk has cracked and the step has settled significantly - and it was already a fairly steep step to begin with. (Every year a few toddlers trip on it during trick-or-treat and I'm starting to feel guilty.)

Issue #1 - I spoke with a home renovation company. Although they can do the concrete, they would like to sell us pavers instead. They do look classier, but they also cost more, and I think they would look silly on a 10 foot long walk between a concrete porch and a concrete drive. Plus, the walk is almost completely shaded in the winter, and we have to chip at the ice, and I'm thinking concrete would be more durable than pavers for this reason.

Issue #2 - What is an ideal height for an easily navigable step? We're not getting any younger, and we have elderly relatives. I'm thinking two small steps would be easier to climb than one big one.

Issue #3 - There is a porch railing, but no handrail by the stairs. (I fell off and got a compound fracture of my ankle there in 2001, although I think it was due to my own carelessness and not the house design, but I always wonder...) Would it look silly to have a railing only on one side, the side away from the driveway? This would give us something to hold onto, but keep the area from being too confining when we lug groceries or sofas or whatever.

Thanks for any suggestions you can give me. This is a nice but unpretentious middle/upper-middle class subdivision home on a quarter acre lot, larger than a starter home but way smaller than an estate home.

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Comments (7)

nandina
19 years ago
watergal,
If you are more comfortable with concrete...then go for it. Just get what sounds like a dangerous situation corrected, please. The step(s) will have to be built to code. The construction company will work measurements out that are best suited for the site. You do not need to micromanage that part of the job. If you want two steps, tell them.

Yes, it's okay to have only one railing. Code usually does not require a railing for just one step. But common sense rules here.

The following suggestion is going to fall on deaf ears. But I will suggest the idea anyway. Being an oldster myself I believe that we all want to remain in our homes as long as we can. This means spending money and adding certain safety features such as grab bars, etc. You plan to install a 10' walk which ices heavily in the winter. It would be possible to install electric coils under that new sidewalk which could be turned on for an hour to defrost the walk as needed. Think about it.
trac_m
19 years ago
watergal,
i have the same problem with the sinking step. The pavers will look nicer, but are costly. Have you looked into stamped concrete? It tends to be a little cheaper.
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miss_rumphius_rules
19 years ago
Here's the formula for steps--more or less...

2 x height of riser + length of tread should equal 25-27". So if you have a 7" high step you could have a tread between 11" and 13". Each 1' of tread should have 1/8" of pitch to allow for runoff.

Hope this helps.
watergal
Original Author
19 years ago
Thanks to all for the good ideas. I like the heated walkway idea - sure to be pricey, but worth checking out. We are definitely getting older and hope to stay here quite a while yet!
littledog
19 years ago
"We are definitely getting older and hope to stay here quite a while yet!"

Have you thought about making them long tread/low riser steps? They can be anywhere from 3 1/2 to 5 inches high, (the shorter the better), and at least 34 inches deep to accomidate someone using a cane or walker. It's best if you can custom build them to match the person who'll be using them, but that a good rule of thumb.

I've been reworking our front porch, and replaced one set of steps with a ramp, and the front steps will be the long tread/low risers variety. Although no one in our family needs them (yet), we're not getting any younger, and would also like to stay here a very long time.

Here is a link that might be useful: LONG-TREAD LOW-RISER STEPS
watergal
Original Author
19 years ago
littledog, hadn't considered that. Should we get to that point, we'd first have to deal with the full flight of stairs up to the bedrooms and bathrooms! Hubby insists we'll just get one of those stair chair lift gizmos. He's got bad knees and ankles, and is older than I am by quite a bit, so it may not be that far off...

I think a better option at that point would be to buy a ranch house. With an enormous attached greenhouse. In Florida. Or Hawaii. Not that I have my own agenda or anything! Hee hee.
littledog
19 years ago
Even though those chair lift escelator things are wonderful, you're right. If it gets to the point that someone in a two story house needs a walker, it's time to relocate.

Seems like I've heard that Hawaii has the perfect climate for bad joints, but then, that could be wishful thinking on my part...