A staircase is different from a front entry step. It carries more flights, retains its own grade, and usually has a structural reason for its geometry. Oshawa Concrete builds outdoor staircases for yard grade changes and walkout-basement stairs, engineered for the load and the slope they cut through, drained so meltwater leaves cleanly. Every project starts with a free written estimate.
Front entry steps go from a threshold to a walkway. A staircase goes from one grade level to another, often through a slope it has to retain, and almost always with more flights and a landing or two. The engineering is bigger, the drainage plan is bigger, and the structural load is bigger.
Outdoor staircases that bridge a yard slope retain the soil on either side, which means the staircase itself doubles as a small retaining structure. Walkout-basement stairs cut from the basement door up to grade and similarly retain whatever the cut exposes. Both need the right footings, the right reinforcement, and a drainage plan so the stair does not become a meltwater channel.
We build all of that to engineered drawings, and we coordinate with adjacent retaining walls if the project includes them, and with the basement walkout if the stairs are the walkout exit. The same standards apply to all our steps and stairs work.
Recent work
How it works
How We Build a Staircase in Oshawa
Plan flights and landings
We plan the staircase with you and the engineer, flights to the right rise/run, landings where code or comfort requires, retained walls where the soil has to be held, and tie-in elevations top and bottom.
Retain the cut
The slope on either side of the cut is retained, with poured walls, block, or a combination, per the engineered design, so the staircase area does not slough back into the work.
Form the flights and pour
Each flight is formed to the planned rise/run, reinforcement is tied throughout, landings are formed, any handrail embeds are placed, and the staircase is poured in the engineered sequence with proper cure between flights.
Drain the stair system
The drainage at the low point is tied to the property drainage or daylighted, the landing surfaces slope to feed it, and the whole stair system is tested with water before being handed back.
Where the stair meets the grade
Staircases Are Civil Work, Not Just Steps
Building a staircase is closer to small civil engineering than to pouring a step. The load on it, the slope it cuts, the drainage it has to handle, and the retaining role it plays all combine into a structure that has to be designed before any concrete is ordered. We work from engineered drawings on every staircase project.
Engineered design, walkout stairs, retaining the cut, drainage and landings.
For anything with multiple flights or any retaining role, yes. The geometry, the loads and the slope all need design rather than rule-of-thumb. We work from the engineer's drawings on every project and the cost of design is in the quote.
Yes; walkout-basement stairs are one of the most common uses for residential staircase construction. The stair runs from the walkout door up to yard grade, retains the cut on either side, and drains away from the door.
Code requires a landing after a certain number of risers, and good design uses landings whenever a flight gets long enough to feel unsafe. We design landings in where they belong rather than forcing one long flight.
Landings are sloped slightly to shed water to one side; the low point of the whole staircase is tied to the property drainage or daylighted. Done right, meltwater leaves the stair instead of running down it.
Several weeks for a typical residential staircase, because engineering, retaining, multiple pours and cure time stack up. The full schedule is in the written quote so you can plan around it.
Walkout-basement staircase, two flights with a landing, engineered drawings followed exactly. Drains the way it was designed to, no puddles. Worth the project.
Z. T.
Oshawa
★★★★★
Yard staircase down a steep slope, retained both sides as it descended. Cut through the slope without sloughing once. Real civil work, real quality.
Z. H.
Toronto
★★★★★
Engineer worked directly with their crew. Communication was tight, the build followed the drawing exactly, and the staircase has held perfectly through three winters.
Y. C.
Brampton
★★★★★
They were clear that staircases are not just steps; engineered, retained, drained. The quote reflected the scope and the build matched the quote. Honest from end to end.
Q. G.
Mississauga
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Tell us the grade change, where the staircase has to land at top and bottom, and any engineer involvement already in motion, and we will assess and quote in writing.
