York Stone Steps Extraction Advice from under a Concrete Ramp

[Wayne1969]

Hi,

We've got a Victorian property with a poured concrete drive dating back from around the late 1960's that's ready for breaking up and re-laying with something more appropriate. I've had all the drains checked out (camera) and they are in good shape despite the drive sag on the drain-line.



The house has had a few uses in its lifetime and front steps have been concreted over to make a ramp to the front door, the path and drive are going to be removed I'm just wondering if the house front steps under the concrete are recoverable and if so, how to go about it. The pictures below show the ramp and the end-view showing the step, still there.




From the side of the ramp I can see that the steps (or part of them) are still there underneath the concrete. The chap who is removing the drive concrete is coming armed with a couple of peckers but I think that could be too aggressive for this excavation job.

It looks like the concrete has been poured directly onto the steps - I've no idea whether it will bind to the surface or crack off along the boundary. Has anybody any experience of doing something similar ?

thanks

Wayne

 

[Cubist]

I think you may get a lucky break with this. Looks like the previous owners were fond of painting the front door step with Cardinal Red. Provided it was not too badly worn before the concrete ramp was poured there a good to excellent chance that the concrete will separate from the step quite easily. However, don't let the person removing it get too aggressive as they could break the step as well.

 

[Wayne1969]

I think you may get a lucky break with this. Looks like the previous owners were fond of painting the front door step with Cardinal Red. Provided it was not too badly worn before the concrete ramp was poured there a good to excellent chance that the concrete will separate from the step quite easily. However, don't let the person removing it get too aggressive as they could break the step as well.

that's a good point, its still quite evident on the top step as you enter the house so the paint is resilient

 

[Cubist]

The concrete is unlikely to have secured a good bond to the paint. Once you start breaking the ramp up, starting from the thin end, it will likely fracture along this unintended 'fault line' making it easier to remove without much damage to the old step.