Concrete pad question...

[Shooter06]

The rear of our house has the typical wood deck- typical in that it looks like **** and is in need of replacement. We had thought of doing a concrete pad instead of replacing the wood deck. The problem is the door that leads outside is approximately 28" off the ground.
What I'd like to do is pour a concrete pad 20 or so inches tall, then have just a small step into the house instead of the pad at ground level and several steps into the house.
Would this require a footer for the concrete pad, or could I just make the edges of the concrete the 20" thick, then taper to a normal 5" or so in the middle? I'd pour gravel to fill up the 15 inches, then taper it at the edges so the concrete was thick at the edges. Obviously, I don't want the concrete to crack, as it definitely freezes where we live in Ohio.

Edited to add the size- probably somewhere in the 20x32 foot size. One side will be up against the house.

 

[joey1320]

What are the measurements of the deck/pad?

 

[Shooter06]

What are the measurements of the deck/pad?

Sorry, forgot to mention that. 20'x32' or so.

 

[joey1320]

Since you like concrete, I would suggest you do a 4-5" pad and add the steps to the door. That's a lot of gravel to fill in if you went the 20" high.

I like decks, so I would just rebuilt/replace what you have but I understand it's not for everyone.

 

[In2toys]

concrete is guaranteed to crack. Like was said that's a lot of fill

 

[NUTTSGT]

I would do the pad at ground level, not raised. Maybe even some stained and stamped concrete. Add some steps coming out the door leading down to the new patio.

 

[dreamingmuscle]

Yes you will need footings since the out side of the slab will be supporting 50% of the weight .

Depth will depend on frost depth in your area.

Glen

 

[like2wheel]

And then you might have to deal with something around the perimeter to keep people from falling off the 20" high pad (more steps, railing, etc)

 

[johnnyradiant]

What's the house wall under the deck? If it ain't concrete or block you certainly don't want to truck in fill and place concrete up against the house at existing height. What about making two tiers with the concrete down and the upper, smaller deck out of wood. That can be done and giving it some variety which gives it some charater and no longer plain. Simple box on box design may keep it plain though so you will want to get a little creative to get away from 'typical' and '****'.

I suspect your code is very similar to here meaning you'd meet min. without rails sitting at 20" but your typical use may have common sense dictate you build better than minimum.