c/bricklayers

Showerthought: My foreman in Omaha always said to wet bricks in summer, but a new guy from Arizona argued it can weaken the mortar bond.

He claimed the rapid drying in dry heat pulls moisture from the mix too fast. Anyone have a take on which method holds up better over a full season?

Hot take: I still use a wooden hawk for my mortar, not a metal one.

Everyone on the crew for the big apartment job in Springfield said I was nuts for not switching to a lightweight metal one. I picked my old wooden one because the mortar doesn't stick to it as much in the cold, and I can just sand it down if it gets rough. It went fine, I kept pace with everyone else and my mix stayed workable. Has anyone else stuck with an older tool that still works better for them?

I bought a 'self-leveling' mortar mixer for a patio job and it was a total joke

Saw this thing online for $250, said it would keep the mix perfect with no effort. Set it up on a small patio job last week, maybe 200 square feet. The motor gave out after the third bag, just made a sad whirring noise and died. Had to run to the rental place anyway and lost half a day's work plus the mixer cost. Anyone know a mixer that can actually handle a full day's mixing without breaking?

Warning: my old way of mixing mud was costing me a full day a week

For years, I'd just dump a bag of mortar in the mixer, eyeball the water, and let it rip. I'd spend half the morning adjusting batches, dealing with stuff that was too wet or too dry, and wasting material. About six months ago, a guy on a site in Tacoma showed me his method: he weighs his sand and cement with a cheap scale and uses a marked bucket for water every single time. I thought it was overkill, but I tried it. Now my mix is the same from the first batch at 7 AM to the last one at 3 PM. I don't have to stop and fix it, and I'm not throwing away half a mixer of bad mud anymore. It probably saves me eight hours of hassle over a normal work week. Has anyone else made a simple switch like that which actually saved a ton of time?

My boss in Phoenix told me to use a 3/8 inch joint on a big garden wall and it looked wrong from day one.

He said it would save time and mortar, but after the first freeze-thaw cycle, the whole 40-foot section had hairline cracks in every single joint, proving my gut feeling about needing a half-inch bed was right all along.

I keep seeing guys skip the line check on long walls and it's a mess.

Worked on a big commercial job in Omaha last month and the crew before us laid about 80 feet of foundation brick without checking their line once. I mean not once. By the time we got there to start the veneer, the whole run was out by almost an inch and a half. We had to tear it all out. The foreman just shrugged and said, 'It looked straight from the end.' It doesn't matter how it looks from one spot. You have to check that line every ten, fifteen feet, especially with a breeze or if the ground isn't perfect. A snapped line isn't a set-it-and-forget-it thing. How do you guys handle keeping a long run true when you're working solo?

Just laid my 10,000th brick on the new library project and my wrist is screaming.

It's a number that sounds cool until you realize it's a solid week of ibuprofen. Anyone have a go-to wrap or support they use for that kind of repetitive strain?

My mortar mixer's belt snapped halfway through a foundation job yesterday afternoon.

I ended up finishing the batch by hand with a hoe in a wheelbarrow, which added about 2 hours to the day, so has anyone found a really durable replacement belt brand for a Whiteman M-100?

DAE see guys not soaking their bricks enough before laying? I watched a crew in Phoenix last week and their mortar was drying way too fast.

Warning: my buddy's 'magic' mortar mix sounded like total nonsense

He swore adding a splash of cola to the mix made it stick better in cold weather, which I laughed off. We were working on a garden wall in early March, temps around 40, and my usual stuff just wasn't setting right. Out of pure frustration, I tried his dumb trick with a can of store brand soda. The next morning, that section was rock solid while mine was still crumbly. Has anyone else heard of this or used something else weird that actually works?

The weirdest mortar additive I ever tried actually saved a job

A guy on another crew swore by adding a bit of dish soap to the mix for hot weather work, said it kept it workable longer. I thought he was nuts, but we were laying brick in 95-degree sun on a south-facing wall in Phoenix and the mortar was setting up way too fast. We tried a capful per batch, and honestly, it bought us an extra 20 minutes of good time. The bond was fine, no issues after a year. Has anyone else used a weird trick that actually panned out?

My foreman in Omaha said my mortar was too wet for the winter temps, and he was right.

I switched to a stiffer mix with less water, and the next day's work set up perfectly without any freeze damage, so what's your go-to cold weather mix ratio?

Talking to an old mason about lime mortar made me change my whole mix

I was working on a repair job for a 1920s house in Cincinnati last week, and the homeowner had his grandfather, a retired mason, stop by. The old guy watched me mixing my standard bagged mortar and just shook his head. He said, 'Son, that wall breathes. You're sealing it in plastic.' He explained that for old brick, you need a softer, more breathable lime-based mix so moisture can escape, or you'll spall the face right off. I argued at first, but he walked me through a simple test with a vinegar drop to check for lime. Sure enough, the original mortar fizzed. I switched my mix for that job, adding NHL 3.5 lime, and the color and texture match was perfect. It hit different because I've been doing it the 'modern' way for ten years without thinking. How do you guys handle mortar specs on historic repairs?

Watch out for that new 'fast set' mortar mix from BuildRight

I used it on a small garden wall job in Springfield last week and it set way too fast, like in 15 minutes. I lost almost a full bag that hardened in the tub before I could use it, which is about $25 down the drain. It also made the joints look rough because I was rushing. Has anyone found a good, reliable mortar that gives you a decent working time?

I was laying a herringbone patio in Cincinnati last month and the homeowner insisted on using a mortar mix with a 'special additive' he bought online. It set up like concrete in 20 minutes and we had to tear out half a day's work.

Tried a 3/8 inch joint on a brick mailbox and it actually held up better.

Everyone on my crew swears by a 1/2 inch joint for everything, but I used a 3/8 inch bed on a mailbox rebuild in Springfield last month. The tighter joint used less mortar and the whole thing felt more solid, with less slumping during the set. Am I crazy, or has anyone else had good luck going tighter on small jobs?

I finally figured out why my mortar was cracking on that big wall in July

Last month I was building a big garden wall for a job in Cedar Rapids, and after three days of work, I started seeing hairline cracks in the joints. I was using my usual mix, but the heat was crazy, over 90 degrees every day. The mortar was drying way too fast before it could set right. I talked to an old timer at the supply yard, and he told me to dampen the bricks before laying them and cover the wall with wet burlap at the end of the day. I tried it, and it worked. The next section set perfectly. Has anyone else had to change their whole summer routine because of the weather like that?

That week in Boise where we laid 4,000 bricks in three days...

The crew was in a crazy good rhythm, and the homeowner kept bringing us cold drinks every hour. We finished the whole garden wall ahead of schedule and the foreman gave us all a $200 bonus. Ever have a job where everything just clicks like that?

DAE see more folks asking for herringbone patterns on driveways?

Pre-cutting a template from plywood saves a ton of time on those angles.

Explaining my job to my niece's class and one kid asked if I build castles for dragons.

Am I the only one who inspects scaffold bases every morning?

A shifted base plate is a hidden danger on site.

Showerthought: I always brushed off using a brick hammer for trimming.

Thought it was just for rough cuts and used my chisel instead. Tried it on some pavers last week and the control was way better, no more broken edges. Pretty stoked to add this to my routine.

Holiday visit to an English brick kiln back in the day

I went there as a young apprentice and saw how they fired bricks by hand. It's wild to compare it to modern automated plants now. Really puts progress into perspective.

Serious question, have you noticed how new mortar sets too fast?

Back in the day, we had mortar that gave us time to adjust bricks (you know, like the good old stuff). Now, the mix dries in minutes, which can lead to messy joints if you're not quick. I've seen whole walls need redoing because of this rush (it's a real pain). Just a heads-up to test your batch before you start a big project.

Running bond vs. stack bond: I always picked running bond, but stack bond worked better on my latest wall. What's your pick?