Front Porch Construction Part 2 – Installing the Posts, Frame and Joists

For day 2, we started with patching the concrete in the area behind the stairs. There was a long thin gap just above the block and below the door that we were afraid water would pool into. I go this new to me stuff called hydraulic cement to fill it in. Turns out that stuff dries crazy fast...like in less than 5 minutes from when you mix it. My dad would mix it a cup at a time, I would slather in on and it was dry before we even got it all up on the wall. In the end the area did get filled and we used the extra to fill in the mortar lines between the foundation blocks.

We uncovered the concrete footings and I was happy to see they dried without cracks and the metal brackets were still in place.

Next we worked on attaching the ledger board to the foundation. I cut a 2x12 to length and marked the placement of the bolts, all at least 2” from the mortar lines of the blocks. To get the sleeve anchors in place, we used a hammer drill to make 5/8” diameter holes in the concrete. Easier said than done; Tom, my dad and I each took turns using the drill for a bolt at a time. The drill was a rental, it had no power and the chuck didn’t tighten anymore. Needless to say this was a slow and unpleasant job, there was so much vibration that my arms itched after using it.

Once all the holes were in place, we hammered in the anchors, added caulk to the holes and tighten the bolts to secure them. I was concerned about this part of the project; which type of anchors, was drilling into block strong enough, would be block crack, etc, but it feels very strong once in place. 

The posts were next, I decided to use 4x4’s and they run from the concrete footings we poured to the underside of the overhang. Once cut to length, we got them in place, leveled them and screwed at both ends. From there we built the frame with 2x10’s, screwed in from the side to the ledger and clamped to the post for now.

After adding a 2x8 joist at each side, we used 3/8” diameter bolts that run through the exterior frame, the post and a joist. There are 3 at each side in a vertical line.

Now that the frame was secured, we could add the remainder of the 2x8 joists at 16” on center. I bought joist hangers for this and it was quick to get them all screwed in place.

Another day done, we had reached a good level of completion. At least it was easier to get the tools into the front room as you could stand on the frame.

And now we know: do not rent a hammer drill or rent a better quality hammer drill. When you rent a one you have to BUY the bit as they don’t rent out the bits....