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How to lay screed on an uneven slab to prepare for outdoor tiling?

Hey everyone,

had a bit of an unfinished project I want to get knocked out. There’s an entryway to our home that never got finished and is just an unfinished slab with a 50mm step down from the entry stairs that are also unfinished. We want to put some tiles down and have some nice 300x300 tiles we found all ready to go for the whole area but my question is, to prepare the area should I screed the area to bring it all up to the 50mm, level it and then tile? Or just self level, and put up with the small lip from the stairs?

this is where the stairs meet the courtyard and as you can see there’s about a 50mm step down that I would like to raise to make it all one level for tiling.

Then it continues to the front door here where there is a drain and some sleepers for the garden beds.

And then to the front door where there is a step up to get into the house which we would want to tile as well.

So to recap, I want to know if we should screed the whole area (not including the stairs) to raise it 50mm and then lay tiles down starting from the stairs to the front door.

Or just self level the top (because it’s really uneven) and just put up with the small step down from the stairs.

And yes I would need to raise the gate about 60mm which is what we plan on ding if we lay the screed.

Cheers!

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Comments

MitchellMc

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @shepperd. It's wonderful to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about levelling a path.

Raising the area would definitely relieve the lip at the stairs, but it’s worth noting it will create a small step where the new screeded area meets the pebbles. One major concern I have is whether there are any weep holes behind the shelving unit you have there. Weep holes need to stay a certain height above the surrounding ground or concrete so water can't run into them — if they're covered or too low, it can cause serious moisture issues inside your home.

Overall, I don’t think raising the area is a bad idea. It gives you the chance to fix the unevenness and remove that lip at the stairs at the same time. The lip at the stairs is quite a significant safety risk — even a smaller step can be a tripping hazard, but right at the stairs it’s even more dangerous, as a fall there could be serious.

You also won’t need to raise it the full 50mm — you’ll subtract the height of the tile and adhesive layer from your screed thickness. Just remember that even though you’ll be levelling the area, it’s still really important to maintain some fall away from the wall of your home so that rainwater can drain properly and not sit against the house.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

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