Making Extra Large Concrete Pavers ( DIY concrete patio )

today i'm taking you out back i'm going to show you how i turned this corner into the perfect chill spot here's what you can expect i'll show you the steps i took to create large concrete pavers which could be used for walkways or your patio space i mapped this project out on paper first so i had an idea on what i needed when i pick up lumber and i don't use them that day i tend to clamp them and let them sit until i get ready to use them after i measure and mark the parts i then use a circular saw to cut all the parts needed i'll need to build three massive frame which i'll be using as the form i started building the frames with nails but after i considered it i switched over the screws later being that i'm working solo i have to think of ways that i can work efficiently once i have the large frame built i then create smaller frames inside that frame the inner frames are measured at 46 by 46 now i could make each of the frames separately but this is where the efficient part come in by using long two by fours this will make things faster but also easier to keep the entire frame level with the first frame completed i made two more i'll address this more in the next video but in a nutshell i'll pick the location and flatten it as much as i could [Music] since the yard is at a pitch i had to do a decent amount of digging then i took the longest and straightest 2x4 that i had with a large level and checked the location just to make sure i was at least close enough now i'll bring out the frames and position them i need to cut some stakes so i can hold the form in place at this point i have the frames in the exact position that i want them now i need to take the stakes and drive them in right up against the frames there's a reason why i built the frame the way i did and hopefully this video would clarify that approach before i go on to level the form i'm going to screw the frames together once i have the frames connected i'll go around and attach the frames to the stakes i think you'll need at least a four foot level i level the outside frame first then i work my way towards the middle now i'm going to take some of the excess dirt around and put it back into the form only people are going to walk on top of these so there's no need to make them the full thickness of a 2x4 this way i get to save on the amount of concrete that i need now i need to compact these as much as possible now i have the inside built up i'm gonna go one step further and use some leveling sand i put about two bags per square to help achieve the thickness that i need then i gave it some more compacting one thing i tried to do was make sure the edge was thicker than the middle overall each slab should have a thickness of around 2 inches some boxes are a bit deeper than this but typically i have around two inches between the level and the sand that i have here that should be plenty of thickness for the concrete i'm outside right now it's about 7am in the morning and i got a little bit of light so i am going to try to get to work and get in front of the sun so after bringing all the cement to the back i'm going to have my mixing area here and then we're gonna pour it over here this is the first time i'm actually working with concrete mixer and believe it or not i've had this mixer for about four years now and it's just been sitting in my shed time to put it to use let's go so what we're gonna need here is a ton of concrete cut them open throw them in here use the right proportion of water and let this thing mix then get it over into the forms yesterday was a really tough day and i calculated the amount of pounds i've moved it was about 14 400 pounds from the pallets in the store to the cart from the cart to my truck from my truck to the garage from the garage to the backyard let's go because i don't know much about this machine i'm going to start off with one bag see how that works out if it works out pretty good i'll probably just do two at a time and we'll go from there i should probably read the instructions on this but come on no idea what those things are all right supposed to put three quarts of water in here so three and a half quarts per bag [Applause] i'll go with two bags let's say you want to take on a project like this i wouldn't expect you to have a mixer however there are some other alternatives that you could look into you can use a wheelbarrow or a mixing tub going this route is a bit more labor intense but it's still possible the other option is you can rent one of these mixing machine or purchase one use it for all your concrete projects and sell it later there are three tools that could have made things a bit easier for me which i didn't have one is a bull float the other one is a placer and a mag float could have been great nonetheless i found a way to work around that regardless i use the trowel to smooth the top over before moving on to the next slab after about an hour or so i'll come back to this and go over it one more time the best thing about this project is i can work at my own pace and that means if i want to do one step a day i certainly can when i mix this per instruction i noticed the concrete was a bit dry so i added an extra half quart of water per bag and this seemed to be a better mix and for a project like this i'm able to learn as i move from one slab to the next yeah so i'm just gonna take this break and just vibrate the corner i didn't do this on the first board so i hope it came out nice so so so all i want to do right here is make sure i get all these cavities and stuff filled in and then once i'm done with this um i'm probably gonna have some lines in it but i'm not gonna worry about it right now i'm gonna go back to the first pour and we're going to add a smooth layer on top it's been about an hour's time since i've poured this first slab i could probably wait a little longer but i'm nearing a state where i can put a finish on here [Music] after a day's work i managed to get six of the nine slabs poured i had a bit of a delay on this due to the multiple rainy days but i was finally able to come out and start working on the next phase there's gonna be another rainy day i'm gonna try to get out in front of that before it gets to pouring i'm gonna take off as much as this form as possible and see if i can at least get one or two of these pads poured [Music] the way i designed this is so that i have to pour this middle section last i've taken the perimeter off and right now i release the middle section and i'm going to lift it up so i can release the screws to take these dividers off in the middle and i'm going to leave this other piece in place push the form back down and then i'll make my pour there's probably an easier way to do this but at the moment this is the best i could come up with so let's make it work well just like i thought i would get rained out on this project i went on to pour the final pad and then it was time to remove all the lumber all right so we got this guy out of here all right so right now i'm just going to repeat everything i just did remove all of the two by fours and just carefully do that so we don't chip any of the edge on the concrete so i designed these specifically so i can get to these screws pull this form off and do the same thing on the other side and then pop this middle piece out so let's run the numbers if you were to hire this job out you'd be looking at fifteen hundred to three thousand dollars here i did the entire project and i was able to keep the cost down not including tools i spent right around 400 in materials oh yeah and a whole lot of labor i'm going to end the video here but if you want to see what i do with this space next stay tuned for the next part to this video where i complete this entire space and show you how i plan to use it if you enjoyed this video be sure to leave me a like and drop a comment down below

Channel: DIY Creators

Views: 1,847,821

Keywords: DIY, DIY Creators, concrete shed foundation, how to make concrete pavers, diy concrete pavers, aggregate concrete finish, concrete slab for shed, diy concrete shed slab, how to make a concrete patio, beginners concrete shed slab, concrete shed slab, concrete paver, how to pour a concrete shed slab, diy how to pour a concrete slab for your shed, how to make concrete paving stones, how to make concrete slabs, shed concrete slab, pouring a concrete slab, diy concrete slab

Id: lkBgjl7YsBc

Length: 14min 17sec (857 seconds)

Published: Sun Jun 19 2022

Reddit Comments

[u/LittleSadRufus]

Very interesting and I like your down to earth presentation style. I don't usually watch this sort of thing all the way through.

Where is the second video you mention, showing how you finish it all off? YouTube just moved on to play something completely different.

[u/Showmemohanson]

Are these going to crack easily? They’re quite wide and thin with no reinforcement. I would assume if the ground settle unevenly these would begin to break apart.

[u/joyfall]

I don't have a yard or any interest in concrete but something about the way you were explaining made me want to watch it all the way through! Was neat seeing how you constructed the wood frames to be accessible to undo properly in the end.

[u/TehG0vernment]

A few things stood out, but I am not a professional so please point out any faults in my logic.

1, No respirator when mixing.

2, I'd probably use a machine compactor if the slabs are that big. Can a hand tamper compact it enough?

3, The slabs seem fairly thin, so with no anti-bubble agent or vibrating AND no reinforcement, will this last? Maybe depending on the climate?

I like the look though. Fill the gaps with something cool - dirt and chia seeds for that Chia Pet look? Or crushed glass and polymeric sand for that glimmer effect? Or ... something?

[u/couch_cushion_dorito]

Just to give folks some perspective from someone who does this professionally, I cringed so many times watching this. Between the lack of proper ground leveling, bar or at least wire reinforcement, and thin giant slabs which must be full of air pockets since no De-airing was done at all, I can only imagine that these will be a crumbled mess within a few months.

I don’t mean to hate, I love the DIY spirit and this guy is passionate and made a cool video about his project, but it really bothers me when people post videos that imply they really know what they are doing and are “teaching” how to do something. People might watch this and do it on their own properties.

So just a quick PSA, if you’re looking to learn to do something, check out videos where a professional is doing it, OR, my personal fave, where a DIYer brings in a pro to help them and then they learn the proper way to do it!

[u/GBJEE]

No wire ?

[u/paktsardines]

Jesus Christ. Wear a mask when you're frolicking in concrete dust.

Silica is the biggest risk to construction workers after asbestos

[u/Stro_Bro]

Gonna crack over time with no rebar/wire mesh in there being that they're fairly thick

[u/FiendishPole]

only thing I noticed is that you typically want a kind of matting under concrete pours like this. Looks like very good leveling though

Love the slab work and the construction otherwise. Just thinking about longevity