LESLIE: Raul in California listens to The Money Pit on the QUAKE – KQKE. And you have a patio question. What’s going on?
RAUL: Well, I’m enclosing an old patio that was open to the outside to the new wall. It drops off about two-and-a-half inches. The steps out from the back door to the initial part of the concrete is right at seven-and-a-half inches, so I can’t really come up anymore; otherwise, it’ll be a really short step.
LESLIE: What is your patio made of?
RAUL: Concrete. And it’s about eight inches thick so it was my plan to not chip it out and have to re-pour it.
TOM: Right. Now, Raul, this room that you’re finishing off – is this going to become part of the interior space of the house?
RAUL: Yes. The main reason I need to level it off is because it drops off from the back door out to the wall …
TOM: The way to level this out is probably to use wood sleepers. And basically, what you’re going to do is you’re going to cut wood beams that would go, essentially, from zero up to that two-and-a-half inches that you’re trying to level it out. Like wood strips. And then …
LESLIE: Like little wedges.
TOM: Right. Like long wedges. And then you’re going to put a floor on top of that. And if it’s all going to be under cover, under roof as part of an interior space, then that’s the way to level it out. I would build wood sleepers, level it out from there. You basically cut the wood sleepers. It’ll be two-and-a-half inches thick on one end and then pretty much down to a wedge – a point – on the other end. You put those in about every 16 inches. They can be attached right to the concrete and then you can put a floor on top of that. And that’s how you’ll have a level surface when you’re done.
Alright, Raul, thanks so much for calling us at 1-888-MONEY-PIT.
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