Prefabricated concrete steps or precast concrete steps are steps made of concrete that you can buy in the desired shape and size from the concrete supply shop. They are professionally executed, delivered and installed at your home.
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Features of Prefabricated Concrete Steps
Usual sizes:
– Risers – High = 7 ½ inches;
– Treads – Wide = 11 ½ inches;
– the Riser, Tread, Sidewall thickness = ½ inches;
– with Top Platform (Landing) = 42 inches x 4, 5, or 6 feet wide;
– without Top Platform (Landing) – Standard width of the top stair tread = 14inches.
Advantages of Prefabricated Concrete Stairs
1. Solid concrete steps, made on site, are heavy and therefore, they are likely to settle over time. Unlike solid concrete steps, precast concrete steps are hollow, lighter and less prone to settle.
2. However, assuming that settling could occur, remediation is easy to do it. They are light and therefore, they can be easily manipulated and replaced.
3. All of prefabricated concrete parts of steps, such as risers, treads. sidewall, landing, are actually a whole, a single piece of concrete. There is no mortar joint. Therefore, they are not affected by water infiltration.
4. They can be bolted and anchored to the foundation which will result in better stability.
5.One of the great advantages of precast concrete steps is that can be ordered and installed the same day.
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Types of Prefabricated Concrete Stairs
Precast concrete steps come in a wide range of sizes and designs.
Usually, their size is:
– Width – between 4 and 10 feet; However, they can be placed side by side if you need a wider prefabricated concrete stairs
– Risers high – between 1 and 7;
Among the most representative finishes, we can enumerate Fieldstone, Concrete Floated Finish, Red Brick, Cobblestone, Exposed Aggregate and Granite.
In areas exposed to weather vicissitudes, precast concrete steps are recommended that incorporate heat mats. These heats mats melt the snow and ice from the steps.