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How to Pour Cement Footings

A footing is a pad on which decks, porches and other structures are built. The footing provides a stable, hard surface for pillars and posts to be attached. To form a footing, you pour concrete into a pre-dug hole. The width, depth and shape of the footing depends on the load of the structure built on it. The most common types of footings are cylindrical versions poured for building decks. The footings can be poured using a cement mixer, or, more commonly, by hand with buckets.

Things You'll Need

Marking paint
Auger
Shovels
Tape measure
Sonotube
Reciprocating saw
5-gallon bucket
Bags of ready-mix concrete
Electric drill
Mixing paddle
Wooden dowel

Instructions

- 1
  Mark the location of the footings with marking paint.
- 2
  Dig into the dirt with the auger. Measure the depth and width of the hole frequently with the tape measure.
- 3
  Clean up the vertical sides of the holes with the shovels. The holes must be as straight (vertical) as possible.
- 4
  Insert the sonotube into the hole and push it down all the way. Sonotubes are sold in 4-foot lengths. Use the reciprocating saw to cut the tube 1 to 2 inches above landscape grade.
- 5
  Pour a bag of ready-mix concrete mix into the 5-gallon bucket. Add the specified amount of water as stated on the back of the bag. Concrete mix is rated by a pounds-per-square inch rating. Each psi level rating requires a different amount of water.
- 6
  Install the mixing paddle in the drill. Use the drill and paddle to mix the water and concrete mix. Work the paddle up and down, side to side. Mix until it has a an even consistency, with no lumps or dried clumps at the bottom.
- 7
  Pour the mixed concrete into the hole. Mix and pour more bags of concrete into the hole until the entire sonotube is filled to the top.
- 8
  Insert the wooden dowel into the concrete. Move the dowel up and down in the sonotube. This brings much of the water to the surface. Start with large plunges, then finish with smaller, "jiggling" motions as you extract the dowel. This process is to help settle the concrete mix and provide a smooth, fine-grain texture at the top of the concrete. Wait two full days for the concrete to cure before building on the footings.

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