c/bricklayers

Question about mixing mud in really cold weather

Last week in Chicago, it was 15 degrees and we had to lay brick for a new garage. My usual mix was setting up way too fast, like in 20 minutes, and the joints looked rough. I tried adding a little warm water and keeping the sand covered with a tarp, which helped a bit. But I'm curious, does anyone have a better method for keeping mortar workable when it's that cold out?

Question about using a laser level versus string lines on a 50 foot wall

Honestly, I had to pick between my old trusty string lines or renting a laser level for a big commercial job last month. I went with the laser and it cut my layout time in half, but the battery died on day three and I had to go back to string anyway. Has anyone found a laser that lasts a full week on a single charge?

I finally saw what I was doing wrong with my mortar mix after a job in Spokane

I was laying brick for a garden wall last month and the mix felt off, too sticky and slow to work with. I kept adding water to try and fix it, which just made it worse. The tip off was when the homeowner, an old guy who used to do masonry, came out and said, 'Son, your mud looks like soup. You're killing the lime.' He was right. I'd been using a cheap bagged mortar and mixing it way too wet for years, thinking it gave me more time. That wet mix was why my joints were always weak and crumbly after a season. Now I mix it much stiffer, like damp sand that just holds together. Has anyone else had a client point out a basic mistake you were making?

Had a chimney rebuild in Omaha where a stray cat decided my fresh mortar was the perfect bed.

Tried a new pointing technique on a chimney in Boise and the difference was crazy

Honestly, I saw this old timer using a technique called 'tuck pointing' with a special hawk and a 3/8 inch jointer. The chimney looked rough before, but after he finished a 20 foot section, the lines were so clean and sharp. Ngl, I've been using a bag mortar gun for years and never got results like that. Has anyone else switched from a gun to traditional tools for detail work?

Tried a new pointing style on a garden wall and the difference was huge

I built two identical brick garden walls for a client in Charlotte last spring, about 30 feet each. On the first one, I used a standard flush joint with my trowel. For the second, I took the extra time to do a proper concave joint with a proper jointer. The concave joint shed water instantly during the next rain, while the flush joint let water sit and darken the brick. It only added maybe 20 minutes to the whole job, but the finished look and function were so much better. Has anyone else found a small change in technique that made a surprisingly big difference on a project?

Found a way to keep my line level from sliding on windy days

I was working on a garden wall in Springfield last week and the wind kept knocking my line level off the pins. Tried taping it, didn't hold. On a whim, I took a small piece of that blue plumber's putty and rolled it into two little balls. Pressed one onto each end of the level where it sits on the line. It stuck to the line just enough to keep it in place but peeled right off after. Saved me a ton of time resetting it. Has anyone else found a better trick for this?

I hit 500 bricks laid in a single day last week and honestly, I think that's a bad goal.

Everyone at the site in Tacoma was pushing for that number like it was a badge of honor, but I felt my joints getting sloppy by brick 400. My mentor, Frank, always said a good wall is about patience, not pace. Has anyone else found that chasing a high count just leads to more callbacks for repointing?

I finally gave up on my old brick hammer for cutting

For years I used a 22 ounce Estwing brick hammer for all my cuts, thinking a brick saw was just extra gear. Last month on a big patio job with 300 pavers, my buddy lent me his 14 inch wet saw. I cut the whole batch in under two hours with clean edges, no spalls. My old way would have taken me all day and looked rougher. Now I'm looking at small saws for my truck. What's a good compact model that can handle a mix of brick and block?

I mixed a batch of mortar with a bit of dish soap in it on a dare.

It was for a garden wall in my own yard, and the soap made it spread like butter but killed the bond strength. The whole thing started leaning after two days of rain. Anyone know a real way to get that smooth workability without wrecking the hold?

Hot take: I thought those laser cut brick ties were just a gimmick

My supplier kept pushing them for a big apartment job in Tacoma last fall, saying they'd save us a day on the project. I figured they'd be flimsy and snap. We used them on one wall as a test, and honestly, the fit was perfect every single time, no bending or cutting. It probably shaved a solid 8 hours off our schedule because we weren't fighting with the old twisted wire ones. I'm still a bit salty about being wrong, but I'm sold. Anyone else switch over and notice a real time save, or was I just lucky?

Appreciation post: My $400 laser level was a total game changer

I fought buying one for years, but laying out that big foundation in Phoenix last week would have taken twice as long without it. Anyone else finally cave on a tool that made them feel silly for waiting?

Heard a guy at the supply yard say 'a good bricklayer can make a bad brick look good' and I've been thinking about it ever since

Just laid my 10,000th brick on the new library job

I was running the line on a big wall section yesterday and my foreman pointed it out from his count sheet. It was just a plain red modular, but it felt different knowing the number. I started keeping a rough tally this year to see my pace, and hitting five figures on one site surprised me. It made me think about all the walls and chimneys that number represents over a career. Anyone else ever stop to count how many units they've set in a year?

Hit 500 bricks laid in a single day on a straight run last week

I was working on a long garden wall in Phoenix and the mix was just perfect, not too wet. I started at 6am and by 4pm I had laid exactly 502 bricks. I've never broken 450 before. It mattered because the schedule was tight and that pace let us finish the base course a full day early. Has anyone else hit a personal best like that on a simple, repetitive section?

So I tried mixing mortar by hand for a small repair versus using my little mixer...

Had to fix about 15 bricks on my own chimney last fall, and figured I'd save time by just using a bucket and a hoe. My arm felt like jelly after 10 minutes and the mix was lumpy. Next day, I dragged out the little 3.5 cubic foot mixer I got used for $200... had the same amount done in maybe 3 minutes, and it was perfectly smooth. The difference in my back and the quality of the work was night and day. Anyone else have a 'never again' moment with mixing by hand?

An inspector in Toledo told me my weep holes were clogged with mortar droppings, and now I check every single one.

Bought a laser level for a big chimney job and it paid for itself in a day

I was working on a two-story chimney rebuild in Tacoma and decided to drop about $350 on a good rotary laser level. Setting the plumb lines and courses went from a half day of checking with a level and string to maybe an hour total. The speed and accuracy kept the client happy and let me move to the next phase way faster. What's the one tool you bought that you now can't imagine working without?

TIL that a standard brick weighs about 4.5 pounds. I was moving pallets at the yard and my back just figured it was less.

Got a game changer tip from a guy on a job in Portland last fall

We were building a brick garden wall and the ground was really wet from rain. This older mason saw me struggling to keep my line straight and told me to soak my mason's line in a bucket of water for ten minutes before I set it up. It sounds small, but a wet line doesn't stretch or sag nearly as much, especially when it's humid. I've been doing it ever since and my corners are way tighter. Anyone else have a simple trick for keeping a line true?

TIL a wet sponge can fix a wobbly brick line in a pinch

I was laying a short garden wall last week and my line kept sagging in the middle, maybe an inch off over 10 feet. Instead of re-setting all the pins (which takes forever), I tried something dumb. I wedged a soaking wet sponge under the line where it dipped, right on the last brick I laid. The water made the line stick to the sponge just enough to pull it tight. It held long enough for me to set the next three bricks and check the level. Has anyone else used a weird quick fix like that when a line goes slack?

Vent: I dropped $400 on a laser level that just can't handle a real jobsite.

Bought a laser level for a big patio job and it was a total game changer

I had this huge patio to lay last month, about 500 square feet with a herringbone pattern. My old string lines were just not cutting it for keeping everything flat and square over that distance. I bit the bullet and dropped around $350 on a decent rotary laser level. Setting it up took a minute to figure out, but once I had that constant beam going, I could check my bed and every single brick in seconds. It saved me so much time from running back to check my lines and re-leveling them. The whole thing went up way straighter and flatter than anything I've done by eye. Honestly, I wish I had bought one years ago for jobs that size. For anyone else doing big flatwork, is a laser level a must-have, or are there other tricks you use to stay on grade?

A foreman in Tacoma told me my mortar was too dry for the weather and it clicked

We were laying a 12 foot garden wall last October and I was mixing my mud pretty stiff, like I always do. The foreman, a guy named Ray, walked over, squeezed a trowel full, and said 'You're gonna lose bond in three hours with this mix, it's 55 degrees and damp.' He was right, the first course started to sag by lunch. Now I always check the air temp and humidity before I even open a bag. Anyone else have a simple rule they changed after getting called out on site?

My kid's science project showed me why we check the line level twice

He built a little bridge out of craft sticks and kept asking why it leaned. I told him the base wasn't square, just like a wall. He fixed it by measuring from both corners, which is basically a 3-4-5 check. I've been doing that for years but never really thought about the 'why' past 'it works'. How do you guys explain layout basics to someone totally new?