- 1). Dress in clothing that will protect your skin against concrete splashing. Wet concrete can burn flesh. Put on gloves, plastic safety glasses, and a paper mask.
- 2). Break off any large, jagged pieces of concrete from the porch with a cold chisel and sledgehammer, then use the tools to carve V shapes into the vertical faces of the porch so that the new concrete has a texture onto which it can cling. Scrub a stiff-bristled brush over holes and cracks in the porch to remove small pieces of concrete and dust. Spray the porch down thoroughly with a garden hose, then wait 2 days for the concrete to dry completely.
- 3). Squeeze siliconized latex caulk into any cracks. Fill each crack until it slightly overflows, then spread the caulk along the surface with your gloved finger. Use a putty knife to smooth and flatten the surface of the caulk, then remove any excess with the knife's edge.
- 4). Use a metal trowel to apply a thin, 3/8-inch-thick later of vinyl concrete patch inside and around holes and divots in the concrete of the porch. Wait 2 hours while this layer soft sets, then fill the rest of the damaged areas with concrete patch until they are level with the concrete around them. Smooth the surface of the patches with the trowel, use the edge of the trowel to scrape away any excess patch product and allow the patches to dry for 24 hours.
- 5). With a clean trowel, apply a thin layer of prepared concrete all over the surfaces of the porch. Wait 2 hours, then apply a second layer of concrete. Smooth and level the surface with the face of the trowel, then float the concrete until you are happy with the appearance.
- 6). Cover the porch with a large plastic tarp or several tarps. Leave the tarps in place for 7 days, pulling them back once a day to lightly spray the concrete with water from a garden hose. After the 7 days are up, remove the tarps.
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