Start a Business Building Concrete Doorsteps

You are assumed to have the skills and equipment needed to perform this service. You may have performed this or similar types of activities in the past. Thus, you may have learned the skills and accumulated most of the required equipment from those prior tasks.

The methods and procedures described on this page can be used to help satisfy your needs, and the needs of likely customers.

The Vital Guidelines for Novices page helps beginners who want to start a business. These guidelines provide focused advice and useful insights.

Before using this information to start a business be sure to read the following notice: Disclaimer

Introduction to idea

Owners pay you for building concrete doorsteps for their houses or apartment units. In some cases, you may have to demolish existing doorsteps and haul away the rubbish.

Concrete doorsteps increase the convenience and value of homes. However, the owners usually are unable to build these doorsteps themselves.

Getting these jobs usually is just a question of making yourself known to potential customers, being qualified to do the work, and quoting the right price for the job.

This activity is performed by the job. Once one job is finished you will have to find another job. However, if you do a good job for a large property owner, you may be called back when other units need these services.

This is an outdoors activity that is best performed in good weather that is not too hot.

This idea is best suited for people who are physically fit and enjoy working with their hands.

Primary skills -- You must have construction or handyman skills that allow you to do a good job building concrete doorsteps.

Equipment owned -- This business idea assumes that you own the following equipment:

Other items -- You need to own or purchase other items, such as office equipment and job supplies. These items are listed under the startup costs on the next topic.

Also, you will need to purchase some or all of the materials needed for each job. The customer will repay you for these materials when you finish the job.

In order to show a profit, you will have to sell enough of your services to cover the startup costs, job costs, and operating expenses. The more income you collect over a certain time period the larger your profits. Therefore, you want to have substantial sales, along with low costs and expenses.

The fees you charge pay for your labor, job materials, use of your equipment and vehicle, and your ability to perform the work in a professional manner. You might charge an hourly rate for your services, or a lump sum for a particular job. Your fee also should include any miscellaneous out-of-pocket expenses you have, such as dump fees.

How much should you charge for your services? This depends on how well off the customer is and how anxious both you and the customer are to make a deal. The economic conditions of the local area might also influence these negotiations.

Estimated startup costs

Note: I am only showing one month for certain expenses. You should be able to get your first job or two in a month. Then these items become operating expenses, not startup costs.

The assumed startup costs for this business idea, using a frugal style of business operations, consist of the following items:

Advertising and promotion (1 month) -- Small classified advertisements or flyers delivered to likely neighborhoods.

Business insurance (1 month) -- Business liability insurance. (Talk to a local insurance agent to see if you need this coverage.)

Governmental requirements -- Local fees and business license. (Note: You might also be subject to state and federal deposits and registration fees, but these will vary. So I have not included them in these startup costs.)

Office equipment -- Business telephone; desk accessories (stapler, paper clips, pen and pencils, etc.); and listing adding machine.

Office supplies -- Check blanks for business checking account, file folders or large manila envelopes (for filing papers), lined writing tablets, pads of accounting journals and ledger, and pads of standard job bid forms.

Reference book -- Bookkeeping for Dummies (Paperback) available from Amazon.com or other online bookstores. (Note: The "for Dummies" series of books are easy to read manuals for normal people, not dummies.)

Estimated Startup Costs
Advertising and promotion (1 month)	$	75
Business insurance (1 month)		50
Governmental requirements (local fees and business license)		50
Job supplies		15
Office equipment		120
Office supplies		100
Other operating expenses (1 month)		50
Reference book		15

Total estimated startup costs	$	475

Note: See the Planning costs and expenses subtopic in the Business Plan on another page for ways to reduce these startup costs.

Putting idea to work

Completing the startup requirements -- This is the last step needed just before you start business operations. See the Listing the startup requirements subtopic in the Business Plan for the items remaining to be completed.

As a minimum, you should have discussed the business idea with your family, set up your business entity, and satisfied all governmental and insurance requirements.

Local information needed -- You need the location of local dumpsites, fees charged for dumping, restrictions on materials allowed to be dumped, and rules for hauling trash.

You also need to see if a building permit and/or contractor's license is needed before you start working on a job in your local area.

Soliciting customers -- Place classified advertisements in your local newspaper and/or the newsletter of the local property owners association. You also might want to deliver flyers to likely neighborhoods (where rich people live). Use a simple, honest description of your services. Once you become well known in the community, you should benefit from word of mouth advertising from satisfied customers.

For additional ideas on soliciting customers, see the Sales Methods page in another section.

Getting jobs -- Hopefully, some of the people who read your advertisements and/or flyers will inquire about your services. During this initial telephone conversation, you should determine if you are willing and able to provide the desired services. If so, you may want to discuss the tentative cost of the job. However, in most cases you probably want to inspect the job site before quoting a price.

Preliminary job activities -- After greeting the customer at the job site, you need to ask for the dimensions and location of the doorstep. Also, determine if the doorstep should slope slightly away from the house to help drain off rain or sprinkler water.

You also should determine if you would need any helpers. Then you can arrange to bring them with you to the job.

The customer may want you to demolish an existing doorstep and haul away the resulting rubbish. So, you need to agree on the fees for any such extra services to be performed.

The customer may be in a hurry and want you to work on a holiday or weekend to get the job done soon.

You can use your job bid forms to estimate the costs of building the concrete doorstep. The cost of materials (lumber for forms and stakes, plastic sheets, ready-mix concrete, and sack of sand mix) can be estimated, subject to actual retail cost. This bid should include the fees for any extra services to be performed, such as working on weekends, and hauling away any trash. The bid probably should include a completion date, subject to availability of materials. If the customer accepts your bid, you both can sign the bid form.

Obtain any needed building permit or contractor's licenses before doing any work.

You need to set the time and date for beginning work, and arrange for access to the property. You also may want the customer to pay you for part or all of the estimated costs of materials before starting the job.

Final job activities -- Inspect the premises to verify you have finished all required tasks. Remove all your equipment and supplies. Gather up all the trash you have accumulated.

Collect your agreed upon fee from the customer. Haul the trash away, if part of your agreed upon services.

Job equipment -- Typical equipment needed: Assorted drill bits and screw drivers, Axe or hatchet, Broom and dust pan, Cut off saw, Carpenter's squares (regular and small), Claw hammer, Concrete finishing broom or patio broom, Concrete rake or steel yard rake, Concrete trowels (including cove, edger, and flat), Electric drill (3/8 or 1/2 inch), Electrical extension cords, Hand saw, Levels (short, medium, and long), Shovels (curved and straight), Sledge hammers (large and small), Tape measure (8 or 12 foot), Water containers (for drinking and other uses), Wheel barrel (heavy duty), and Wood hand float.

Job materials -- Typical materials needed: Assorted screws, Concrete from a ready mix truck (or bags of concrete mix and water), Double headed nails (8 penny and 16 penny), Heavy cardboard boxes, Lumber (2x4 and other widths as needed), Rolls of plastic sheet (narrow and wide), Sheets of plywood or OSB, Water (may need to bring to the job site for use with bags of concrete mix or sand mix, and for cleaning tools), and Wooden (or steel) stakes (about 18 inches long).

Related activities -- Building concrete sidewalks. See this page for more information.

Main procedures

Use markings on the side of house to indicate the height and position of the side forms for the doorstep.

Dig out existing material down to depth of doorstep base, or further to reach a solid base. You may need an axe or hatchet to cut any roots. You probably have to haul away any sod and dirt dug out.

If gravel is needed for drainage, place it on top of the doorstep base and tamp it down vigorously.

For a low doorstep, you may only need 2x4 or wider boards for side and front forms. Drive wooden or steel stakes into the ground to hold these boards. Attach the boards to the stakes with screws or double headed nails. The inside dimensions of the side and front forms should be the desired width and length of the doorstep.

For a high doorstep, you will need sheets of plywood or OSB for side forms. Nail 2x4 or wider boards around the edges of the sheets to brace them. Use pointed 2x4 stakes at the bottom and 2x4 braces (angled from the house or ground) at the top to hold the side forms in place. The higher the doorstep the more bracing is required. (You can't have too much bracing for high doorsteps.)

Use boards of the proper width as front forms for the exposed steps. Attach these between the side forms at the proper position. Some people like to have the steps canted forward slightly to increase the width of the step below.

You must be able to disassemble the forms quickly after the concrete has been poured and set up. You have to remove the forms without disturbing the concrete. So use screws or double headed nails when attaching the braces and the front forms to the side forms.

I always like to backfill around the bottom of forms with dirt or sod to keep the wet concrete from oozing out.

It is best to avoid pouring concrete in hot or cold weather. It sets up too fast in hot weather. It won't cure properly in cold weather unless special precautions are used. The best temperature for pouring concrete is between 50 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit.

After you have ordered the ready mix and before the truck arrives, spray the area to receive concrete. Just get the area damp, don't leave puddles of water.

Lay down plastic sheeting to protect areas next to where you will pour the concrete.

As the concrete is poured into the forms, use a rake or shovel to distribute it evenly. Jab the wet concrete continually with a shovel to make it settle onto the base and against the side forms. Run a flat shovel along the side and front forms to minimize voids.

Use a straight 2x4 about two feet longer than width of the doorstep as a screed board. Place this 2x4 on its edge on top of the side forms. Then saw the screed back and forth while pushing the excess concrete slowly forward. You can use a shovel to fill in any depressions in the concrete surface.

As the concrete starts to set up use a wood hand float to level it out and bring the fines to the surface. You also should use the hand float to cover up any exposed aggregates (rocks).

Remove side and front forms after concrete has set sufficiently. Dump a sack of sand mix into the wheelbarrow, add water slowly, and mix with a shovel. Apply the wet sand mix to cover the voids and marred surface of the concrete doorstep. You have to apply the sand mix while the concrete is still green. (Green concrete has set, but has not hardened yet.)

Use a cove and edger trowel on the sand mix after it starts to set. Use the flat steel trowel to finish the concrete as it continues to harden.

The final treatment is to pull a concrete broom or patio broom over the surface just before it starts to really harden. It's better to make some trial passes with the broom and then refinish the concrete, rather than wait too long and not be able to use the broom effectively. You may want to practice on short slabs first to get the hang of things.

Don't leave rubbish or wasted concrete on owner's property. Wash off tools over a sheet of plastic. Haul away the rubbish and wasted concrete in trash bags.

Background information

Wet concrete consists of Portland cement, sand, gravel or crushed rock, and water. The more water used, the easier it is to work the concrete. However, too much water weakens the concrete.

After you have poured the concrete, it starts to set and then harden. This is due to the chemical reaction between the Portland cement and water. Concrete has to cure for three or four days as the chemical reaction goes to completion.

For very small jobs, you can buy sacks of concrete mix. Dump a sack into a heavy-duty wheelbarrow, add water slowly, and mix together with a shovel. For larger jobs, you normally call a ready mix plant to have a mixer truck come out.

When you order concrete from a ready mix plant, tell them you are using the concrete for a doorstep. Then they will mix the four ingredients for the concrete in the proper proportions.

If you have to use a wheelbarrow to haul concrete to the placement site, don't fill it more than half-full. Trucking concrete in a wheelbarrow is hard work. Besides, you don't want to spill the load because it is too heavy.

After the concrete has been mixed in a wheelbarrow or poured from a ready mix truck, do not add more water to make it easier to work. The excess water will weaken the concrete. However, you should moisten the area where you will pour the concrete. This prevents the moisture from being drawn out of the fresh concrete.

Soon after you have poured the concrete, there may be some excess water that rises to the surface. Allow this excess water to evaporate. Using a wood hand float as the first finishing tool creates a rough texture, which allows this water bleed to evaporate.

If the concrete is exposed to the sun on a warm day, you need to protect it during the curing period. This curing period begins after the concrete has set and is starting to harden. It lasts for three or four days. During this period use a curing compound, or spray mists of water on the concrete several times a day. However, do not sprinkle water on top of concrete before it has set and started to harden.

You order concrete from the ready mix plant in cubic yards. One cubic yard is 27 cubic feet.

If you have a spreadsheet or calculator, you can easily calculate the amount of concrete needed in cubic yards. First, calculate the amount needed in cubic feet. Then divide the result by 27 to arrive at cubic yards.

If the base for concrete is hard clay or subject to standing water, place a minimum 2-inch layer of gravel on top of the base for drainage.

You may be able to do all the work on a small job yourself. An example would be a small single slab doorstep.

For bigger jobs, you need one or two strong helpers to assist you. This is especially important when pouring and finishing the concrete.

SBI!