c/bricklayers

The old gray book at the union hall had a mortar mix ratio I never knew

I was waiting for a meeting last Tuesday at Local 4's hall in Akron and flipped through this 1962 manual someone left on the table. It said for soft brick, you drop the lime down to 1 part and crank the sand up to 6. I always used 1:1:5 from what my foreman showed me. That little tweak makes the mud way more workable on old facades. Has anyone else run into an old spec sheet that corrected something you'd been doing for 15 years?

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harper_owens•20h ago

Green mortar vs lime mortar, my old man was right

I spent 6 years mixing green mortar for everything, repointing old brick in Cincinnati and all. Picked up a job on a 1920s church and the foreman made me switch to lime putty for the soft brick. First freeze-thaw cycle this spring, the lime joints flexed where my rigid patches would have cracked. That church job convinced me, now I ask about the building age before I mix anything. Anyone else run into customers who insist on Type S for historical work?

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christopher402•1d ago

Can we talk about the day a dry pour shifted on me in Cleveland?

Back in 2015 I laid a 40-foot wall outside a diner on Euclid Ave and the footing cracked overnight after a frost heave, so I had to chisel out two full courses and redo them with a story pole I should have used the first time, has anyone else fought a cold-weather pour like that?

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karenp11•6d ago

That mortar mix change in Asheville made a huge before and after difference

Switched from a standard Type S to a lime rich blend on a retaining wall job last month. The old stuff was cracking within 3 days, even with proper curing. New mix held up through a full week of rain and the joints look almost clean. I had to adjust my water ratio about 15% and slow down the trowel work. Has anyone else seen that big of a jump just from swapping the binder? Curious if it was a fluke or if lime heavy is the way to go for wet climates.

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jordan330•6d ago

Noticed a clever brick bond on a old courthouse in Ohio

Last month I was in Dayton for a job and walked past the county courthouse. The brickwork on the east wall had this running bond with a row of dark headers every fifth course. It caught my eye because it's a pattern I only see in books, not on modern builds. The joints were thin, maybe 3/8 inch, and the brick had that rough, hand-pressed texture you can't fake. I stood there for 15 minutes just tracing the pattern with my phone flashlight to see how they turned the corners. Made me realize we lean too hard on standard stretcher bond for everything. Has anyone else spotted an old bond pattern that made you rethink your own layout? I'm thinking about trying it on a small garden wall just to practice the geometry.

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rosek44•10d ago

The extra mortar on the line was killing my speed until I stopped adding it

I used to spread a fat bed of mortar on the line, thought it meant a stronger joint. Last week on a wall in Tacoma I timed myself, 40 bricks an hour. Switched to a thinner, even bed that just covers the frog, no squish out the side. Hit 65 bricks an hour and the wall looked cleaner, less clean-up too. Anyone else find that less mortar actually sets faster and holds just as good?

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noah880•12d ago

The laser level hype took me 6 years to buy into

I spent years calling laser levels a crutch for guys who couldn't read a string line. Then I took on a retaining wall job in Akron last August, 140 feet long with a 2 percent fall. The string sagged in the heat, I re-shot it three times, and still ended up 3 inches off at the far end. Borrowed a buddy's rotary laser for the second half, finished in one afternoon, no rework. I'm not saying ditch the string entirely, but for anything over 50 feet I'll eat my words now. Anyone else hold out on a tool way longer than they should have?

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miab87•13d ago

The difference 8 years makes on a mortar mix in Tulsa

I started laying block in Tulsa back in 2016 and we always used that stiff, almost crumbly mix. Last spring I got on a job where the spec called for a wetter, stickier blend with more lime and I honestly thought the foreman was nuts. That wall went up clean, no sagging on the second course, and the joints tooled like butter. It took me that long to realize the old way wasn't skill, it was just habit. Has anyone else switched their mix ratio and seen that much of a jump in how straight their lines look?

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clairer79•15d ago

Old mason in Raleigh showed me a line pin trick I still use

I was on a job in Raleigh last month, this older guy John was running the crew next to ours. He saw me tying my line to a brick and just shook his head. He walked over, took a piece of rebar about 8 inches long, bent the end into a hook, and drove it into the mortar joint. Said it holds the line tighter and doesn't shift when the wind picks up. I've used it on three walls since and my corners have never been straighter. Anyone else picked up a simple trick from an older hand that you swear by now?

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finleycooper•16d ago

I finally bought a laser level after 12 years of string lines

Dropped $180 on a green beam unit last month for a curved garden wall job in Asheville, and it paid for itself in one day since I stopped re-measuring every course, but now I'm wondering if anyone else has trusted these things for tricky batter angles or is that where they still fall apart?

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harris.james•16d ago

A job site comment about my buttering technique stung, then made sense

Last Tuesday on a retaining wall job in Tacoma, a younger guy with a laser level watched me lay a course and said my mortar was too wet, that I was smearing instead of setting. I almost brushed it off because I've been doing this since 1998 and my walls hold fine. But he pulled up a close-up photo of my joints and showed me the hairline shrinkage cracks forming at the edges. I checked three walls I did last month and sure enough, the dry spots were all there. He's got me trying a drier mix with a shorter working time now. Has anyone else switched their consistency after years of habit, or is this just a trend with the new generation?

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luna_kim40•17d ago

Mason's line keeps snapping on wet days, any trick?

Was laying brick at a job site near the river last Thursday and my mason's line broke three separate times before lunch, all because the line got soaked and stretched. I've been building for 12 years and never had it fail this bad, even with the cheap stuff. Anyone found a line or treatment that holds up better when the weather turns?

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beth878•18d ago

That laser level I laughed at for years finally proved itself

I always thought laser levels were for guys who couldn't handle a string line and a spirit level. Last month on a retaining wall job in Toledo, I had to lay 40 feet of block on a slope that kept shifting. I borrowed my buddy's laser and set it up once, then just checked every course against the beam. It saved me maybe 2 hours of re-stringing and re-measuring. I still use my old level for small stuff, but I get why the young guys swear by the laser now. Anyone else resist a tool for years and then admit it's actually better?

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jason524•18d ago

I finally paid $900 for a rebar cart and wish I did it years ago

My back gave out on a driveway pour in Des Moines last June and I caved on a motorized rebar cart after my helper quit. It set me back $900 but I placed 1,200 feet of rebar in half a day, which would've taken three days bent over. Has anyone else tried one of these or did you just stick with the old carrier and pay for it later?

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betty_white39•20d ago

A retired mason in Omaha taught me the value of a clean joint

Last spring I was working a small retaining wall job and this older gentleman, must have been 75, stopped by to watch for a few minutes. He didn't say anything at first, just looked at my joints and then asked if he could run his trowel along one. He told me I was brushing too early and leaving a dusty film that would weaken the bond over time. I had never really thought about it, but he showed me the difference on a test piece and it made total sense. Has anyone else had a stranger correct their technique in a way that stuck with them for years?

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wendy_park76•20d ago

Hand-cut or sawn? My brick arch gamble in Austin

I had to pick between cutting every brick by hand for a curved arch or renting a wet saw for the day, and I went with the wet saw because my wrist has been bugging me for weeks. The saw made clean cuts fast, but the dust and water mess slowed me down on the scaffold, and I second-guessed my joint spacing twice. Anyone else tried both ways on a small residential job, which one kept the lines tighter for you?

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jordanl82•21d ago

That moment I realized my level was the problem, not my wall

Last month I was fighting a corner for 2 hours, kept getting lippage no matter what I did. Turns out my 6 foot level had a bend in it from getting dropped on a job site in Pittsburgh 3 years ago. Has anyone else blamed their technique for weeks only to find out a tool was lying to you the whole time?

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jamie_taylor•23d ago

The chalk line trick my old foreman showed me back in '09

I used to snap lines twice 'cause they'd fade after the first few courses. Then he showed me to wet the chalk line slightly before snapping, and it leaves a mark that lasts through a whole day of rain, even on old brick. Anyone else got a retired guy's trick that just stuck with you?

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wright.kevin•23d ago

The day I stopped buttering my brick edges

For about 12 years I ran a full bed of mortar on every brick face before setting it. Old timer I worked with in Columbus swore it prevented voids and gave a better bond. Last spring I tried the spot method on a big retaining wall just to save time, about 300 bricks in two days. Honestly I can't tell any difference in the finished wall, and I saved maybe 3 hours total. Anyone else switch techniques and find the old way was just habit?

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noranguyen•25d ago

Leveling compound hid a sloped lintel for 3 years, then a door frame cracked

That crack showed up Monday morning above the arch in my aunt's basement in Dayton, and when I chipped the mortar out I saw the original steel lintel was off by a full 1.5 inches, so I had to brace the wall and re-set it with a bottle jack before I could even think about patching, has anyone else dealt with someone else's leveling compound hiding a bigger problem like that?

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the_sam•27d ago

I finally switched from a string line to a laser level for long runs

After fighting a sagging line on a 40 foot garden wall last month, I borrowed my neighbor's rotary laser and it took me 10 minutes to set up what usually takes an hour, so has anyone else made the switch and gone back?

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paule53•27d ago

Vent: That $400 laser level I bought last spring was a total money pit

I grabbed one of those self-leveling green beam deals for a big patio job in March, thought it would save me time. It kept drifting after an hour of use, threw my whole first course off by half an inch. I had to tear out 80 blocks and re-lay them, cost me a whole weekend. Anyone else had luck with a cheaper tripod and string line instead of shelling out for the fancy gadgets?

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riley_price•1mo ago

Laid a herringbone pattern I hated, now it's my go-to

Did a small patio for my sister-in-law last spring, she insisted on herringbone with reclaimed brick. I was sure it would look scrappy and take way too long. Turns out the irregular edges kinda hide the small gaps and it went down quicker than straight sets once I got the rhythm. Anyone else find a pattern they mocked actually saves time in the long run?

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fisher.charlie•1mo ago

Appreciation post: picked old-school lime mortar over modern mix for a 1920s row house job

I had a choice last month on a row house in Baltimore, do I go with traditional lime mortar or just grab the standard Type N mix from the yard. Went with the lime after talking to a guy who's been doing restoration for 40 years, and man the brick just breathes better and the joints didn't shrink crack like I've seen with cement mixes. Have any of you dealt with lime mortar on old buildings and had good luck with it?

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hannahcoleman•1mo ago

Warning: Don't waste $400 on the 'premium' mortar mix from that online supplier

I ordered a pallet of that specialty Type N mortar from BetterBrick Supply back in March. Said it was formulated for historic homes and would set perfectly every time. First batch I mixed up was way too sandy and crumbly, nothing like the bags I get from my local yard. I tried adjusting my water ratio three times, still got garbage. Went through half the pallet before I gave up and had to buy regular stuff from Abbot Lumber to finish the job. Customer made me tear out a whole section of a retaining wall because the joints looked off. So $400 down the drain plus two extra days of labor. Anyone else get burned by fancy internet mortar that didn't hold up?

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