c/bricklayers

Cement mix ratio debate started by a foreman in Nashville

Last summer on a job in Nashville, a foreman told me to stop using the standard 1:3:6 ratio for footings and switch to a 1:2.5:5. He claimed it saved on cracking after 6 months. I've been doing it his way since, but now my mortar is setting too fast for my liking. Anyone else had a boss push a mix change that messed with your workflow?

Watched an old mason lay 500 bricks in a day in Charleston

I was in Charleston for a job last month and stopped to watch this guy working on a historic wall. He barely used any mortar and never once re-leveled a brick. Anybody here ever pick up tricks from just watching the old timers?

My uncle's advice about wetting bricks turned out to be a disaster

My uncle Bill, who's been laying brick for 40 years, told me to always soak my bricks before laying them on a hot day. I was working on a garden wall in Austin last July, so I soaked a whole pallet of them in a trough for about an hour. Well, the mortar started sliding everywhere and the wall looked like a wavy mess by lunchtime. Turns out he meant a quick spray with a hose, not a full soak. Has anyone else gotten bad advice from a well meaning relative?

Brick or block for a garden wall, what's your go to?

I'm starting a garden wall next week for a client in Portland and I keep going back and forth on material. I usually use clay brick for smaller projects like this because it looks clean and ages nice. But the client wants it about 4 feet tall and 20 feet long, so I'm thinking concrete block might hold up better against the wet ground here. My last garden wall with brick had some frost heave issues after two winters, and I had to go back and repoint a bunch of joints. On the flip side, block looks clunky unless you spend extra on a textured finish or stucco it. What do you guys usually pick for retaining walls that are more cosmetic than structural? Does the local climate swing your choice one way or the other?

That time I tried a butter knife for pointing in a pinch

Had a job out in Billings a few weeks back and forgot my pointing trowel at home. Used a butter knife from the dinette to do the mortar work on a small chimney repair. It actually worked okay for the first 10 bricks, but then the handle broke off and I got mortar all over my hand. Has anyone else ever had to use a weird tool when theirs went missing?

Wrote off those expensive trowels as a gimmick for years

Bought a Marshalltown duraform last month after my buddy in Tulsa swore by his and now I'm kicking myself for all those blisters I got from my old cheapo trowel - has anyone else found a tool they ignored that turned out to be a game changer?

Spent $150 on a fancy mortar mixer paddle and it almost ruined my job

I was laying a big retaining wall last month and decided to upgrade from my old paddle to one of those spiral mixers. Paid $150 for it at the supply shop. First batch came out perfect, but by the third mix the spiral started wobbling and threw mortar all over my helper. The old paddle I had for 10 years never did that. Has anyone else had better luck with those expensive mixers, or is the basic one the way to go?

Old foreman told me to stop wetting my bricks before laying - big mistake on a hot job

Saw some new brick patterns on a job site in Salem and it threw me off

I was walking through a new development in Salem last week and noticed a crew laying brick in a diagonal herringbone on a wall. It looked sharp but I could tell it was taking them twice as long as a standard running bond. Has anyone else tried fancy patterns on residential jobs and found they're worth the extra time?

That time a pigeon stole my mortar mix in Brooklyn

Last Tuesday I'm laying brick on a brownstone in Park Slope and a pigeon lands right on my fresh batch of mortar. I shoo it away but it comes back three times, like it was daring me. My foreman saw the whole thing and started cackling, said the bird had better timing than most apprentices. Has anyone else had wildlife mess with their job site?

Pro tip: I was soaking my bricks wrong for 15 years

I was at a job site with an old timer named Jerry and he asked why my bricks looked wetter on one end. He said I was over-soaking them by leaving them in a tub overnight. Turns out a quick 10 minute dunk is all you need. Any longer and the water sits in the core too long and messes with your mortar bond. I had been wondering why some walls had tiny cracks after a season or two. Anyone else learn a basic thing way later than they should have?

My foreman swore by wetting the bricks, so I tried it on a retaining wall last summer

Honestly, I was skeptical at first because everyone I worked with always laid dry. But this old guy, Tom, who's been laying since the 70s, kept saying it helps the mortar bond better in hot weather. So on a 90 degree day in Phoenix, I soaked a batch for a small garden wall. The mortar stayed workable way longer and I didn't get any cracking like I usually do on those days. Anyone else swear by this or was it just the weather that saved me?

Swapped my old mortar mix for type S last month and glad I did

I used to use whatever bag was cheapest at the supply house for years, mostly type N. Then I took on a retaining wall job in Pittsburgh where the freeze-thaw cycle wrecked a section after two winters. Talked to a mason there who said type S with the higher Portland content holds up way better. Anyone else switch types and notice a big difference in durability?

Decided to go with a Marshalltown trowel over a W Rose last month

I was at the supply house in Columbus and had to pick between a Marshalltown and a W Rose finishing trowel. Heard good things about both but the Marshalltown felt better in my hand right there. The balance was closer to the handle and it didn't flex as much when I pressed down. Been using it for about 3 weeks now on a patio job and I'm happy with how it lays the mortar flat. Only complaint is the handle got a little slick after some rain. Anyone else switch brands and find one worked better for a certain type of brick?

Unpopular take: mixing mortar by hand is better than using a mixer

I've been laying brick for 12 years now and I swear by hand mixing. Last week on a job in Denver, my buddy Jeff brought out his fancy mixer and the mortar ended up way too airy. Three years ago I tried a mixer for a big wall and had to redo 20 ft of it because the consistency was off. Has anyone else found that hand mixing gives you way more control over the slump?

Hit 100 square meters of facing brick in one shift last Tuesday

Didn't even realize until I cleaned up and counted the pallets. Three guys, 12 hours, just clicked. Anybody else ever surprise themselves with a number like that?

Brick lifted clean off the wall during a cold snap last January

I was working a retaining wall job in Hamilton and the temperature dropped to -12 overnight. Next morning I went to lay the next course and a whole section just came loose in my hand. Turns out the mortar had frozen before it set. Had to chip out 6 courses and start over with accelerant in the mix. Took an extra day and a half. Anyone else deal with frost heave on fresh work?

Got told my brick pattern was 'lazy' by a homeowner

I was finishing up a walkway in Denver last spring for a new build and this guy comes out as I'm laying the last few bricks. He points at the running bond pattern I was doing and says 'that's the lazy man's pattern, you should be doing a herringbone.' I just looked at him and asked if he wanted to pay for the extra material and labor. He shut up quick but it stuck with me how people think they know our job better than we do. Has anyone else had a homeowner try to tell you how to do your work on the fly?

Tried that old lime mortar mix my grandpa swore by on a 1920s chimney repair

I was fixing up a chimney on a house down near Frederick last month and figured I'd give it a shot. The mix was way softer than what I'm used to and it crumbled a bit when I was pointing it up. Learned that you gotta wet the old joints way more than I thought or the new stuff just won't bond right. Any other old timers out there still mess with lime mortar or is it just me?

Had a retired mason tell me I'm laying brick too fast

I was working a job in Oakville last Tuesday on a new retaining wall, and this older guy walks over from the house next door. He watched me for like 10 minutes and said 'you're rushing your joints, they'll crack in two winters.' I always thought speed was the key to making money, but he showed me his work from the 80s and it was still perfect. Has anyone else had a seasoned guy slow them down and it actually helped your end result?

Watched a guy try to lay brick in 95 degree heat last week without wetting his line

I'm out on a job in Phoenix and this new crew shows up next door. The guy running the line was bone dry, mud was stiff after 10 minutes. By noon his third course was already pulling away because the line baked in. He had to tear out 30 feet of work. How do you even get through an apprenticeship without learning to keep your line damp?

Getting really tired of seeing stacked bond on load-bearing walls around here

I walked a new development site over on Maple Drive yesterday and three different houses had all their brick laid in stacked bond on what were clearly load-bearing exterior walls. This is the fourth time in six months I've spotted this on new builds around here. Am I the only one still teaching apprentices that running bond is non-negotiable for structural walls?

Hit 10,000 bricks laid in a single job and it kind of blew my mind

I was working a big commercial project out in Aurora, a strip mall foundation. Started tracking my daily count just out of curiosity, nothing serious. After about 3 weeks I added it up and I was over 10,000 bricks for that one job alone. Never even thought about hitting a number like that. Some guys say you shouldn't count, just work. Others say tracking keeps you honest and shows your speed. Which side are you on? Do you keep a tally or just focus on the wall?

Saw a huge shift in my brick color after I switched to a new water source on site

After 15 years using the same municipal water for mixing, I tried rainwater from a cistern on a job in Austin and the final wall came out noticeably darker and more uniform - has anyone else seen their mortar or brick change like that based on water quality?

Used to mix my mud by eye but now I measure out every batch after a wall fell over

Last summer I was slapping up a garden wall in Austin and figured I had the mix right like always. Five days later the whole thing buckled because the mortar was too sandy. Now I use a 1:3 ratio with a bucket and a scale every single time, no shortcuts. Has anyone else had a job fail because of a bad mix?