- 1). Purchase the cement of your choice from a hardware or home improvement store. Check the product to find out how much area a single package will fill. Make sure that you buy the correct amount of your chosen cement product to create a 6-foot wide by 6-foot long by 4-inch thick slab. Have your cement mixed in the store to save yourself some work if they offer that service.
- 2). Construct a wooden frame in which to pour your slab and decide on a location. Butt the edge of one 6-foot board up against the flat side of an 8-foot board, approximately 1 foot from the end of the 8-foot board. Secure the boards together by hammering 2 or 3 nails into the flat side of the 8-foot board so that they sink into the edge of the 6-foot board. Position the second 6-foot board 1-foot from the other end of the 8-foot board and nail it in the same way as you did the first. Place the remaining 8-foot board against the unsecured ends of the 6-foot boards. Arrange the 8-foot board so that it is perfectly even and parallel to the first 8-foot board and attach it to the 6-foot boards by sinking 2 or 3 more screws through each end of the flat side into the edges of the 6-foot boards. Use a tape measure to measure the length and width of your finished frame and make sure that it is a perfect 6-foot by 6-foot square.
- 3). Push a 2-inch by 2-inch wooden peg approximately every 2 feet along each side of the frame. Come back and hammer each peg halfway into the ground, so they can be easily removed late. Cut the top off of each peg with a hacksaw so that the tops of the pegs and the top of the frame are as even as possible.
- 4). Dig a 4-inch deep trench that is no wider than the width of your shovel around the inside edges of your frame. The edges of your foundation will be thicker and weightier and make your foundation stronger. Lightly moisten the soil within the wooden frame by spraying it using a garden hose with a fine mister attachment. Tamp the soil within the frame down well with a long-handled tamp to make the surface perfectly flat and even.
- 5). Put on work gloves and some safety goggles. Cover your arms, legs, and feet completely so that no cement cam become stuck to your bare skin.
- 6). Pour all of the cement into a wheelbarrow. Move the wheelbarrow close enough to your frame that you can tip it and pour the concrete in. Fill the frame with enough cement to cover the surface area inside your frame and form a layer that is approximately 1-inch deep. Spread the concrete around evenly with a shovel. Position a reinforcing rod, approximately 5-feet long, in the center of your poured concrete. Lay a long piece of #3 rebar into the perimeter of the concrete, 2 inches from each side of the frame. Carefully bend the rebar to wrap it around at the corners. Where the rebar crosses the reinforcing rod, overlap them and secure them together with tie wire.
- 7). Pour the rest of the cement into the wooden frame until it is full nearly all the way to the top. Use a hammer to tap the outside of the frame at intervals to get rid of any air pockets and settle the cement.
- 8). Screed the surface of the cement to level it by placing the screed on the tops of the side framing boards at one end and running it to the other end using a back and forth "sawing" motion. Be careful not to choose a screed that is too heavy for your cement, or it may cause a depression.
- 9). Smooth the surface of the cement by moving a finishing trowel or a rubber float in large, arching movements. Allow the cement to cure for 20 to 30 minutes, then repeat. Allow it to cure again for 20 to 30 minutes, then smooth the surface a final time. Let the cement rest so that all of the surface moisture can evaporate.
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Use the finishing trowel or rubber float to finish the surface once again when all of the moisture is gone from the surface. Let the cement cure for 3 days. Use a garden hose with a fine mister attachment to lightly spray the slab once a day during this 3-day period. Remove the frame at the end of the curing period. If it does not lift easily away, remove the nails with the back of your hammer and take the frame apart from around the slab.
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