How to Do a Concrete Outdoor Floor
- 1). Outline where you want your patio to be with stakes and twine.
- 2). Dig down 6 inches inside the stakes, across the whole area where the patio will be.
- 3). Nail the 2-by-6-inch boards to the insides of the stakes to enclose the area where you’ll be pouring the concrete.
- 4). Use the tamper to flatten the dirt in the area you just dug out.
- 5). Lay down gravel inside the form. There should be 1- to 2-inch layer of evenly spread gravel.
- 6). Roll out the wire mesh above the gravel.
- 7). Mix the concrete in the wheelbarrow using the shovel and hose. Follow the directions on the package for the right mix of cement and water. You also can hire a cement truck to pour wet concrete directly into your form.
- 8). Smooth out the surface of the concrete with your two-by-four as it's being poured to ensure it’s perfectly level with the top of your wooden form.
- 9). Run your concrete edger around the entire perimeter of your slab and across the slab to create straight seams. Place the seams as far apart as the narrowest side of your patio. If you have a 5-by-15-foot patio, run the seams along the short side, spaced every 5 feet. If your slab is longer than 10 feet, put an additional seam in the middle.
- 10
Let the patio dry for a couple days before removing the forms.