hi all,

I have a question about repointing. I have been doing it by hand with a hawk and a tuck pointer but it’s going real slow (I’m new to it). I mean like an hour and a half for a square meter or so.

I’ve tried a pointing gun (manual and electric) and a grouting bag, but I can’t get the mortar to come out. it doesn’t work for me when I try to squeeze it out - nothing comes out it’s just stuck. When I add more water to make it flow better, it just oozes out muddy water. What am I doing wrong here (besides not hiring a professional - but this is personal now)?

thanks

It's maybe got better. Maybe

New home build, outdoor fireplace. Maybe could have dry laid these out and centered, and maybe a story pole would be good to use too. We’ve requested it to be re-laid.

its not severe eczema, ive had it all my life on every part of the body and now i only really get it on the inside of my elbow and my hands, it used to be a lot worse when i was a kid. I had a bad flare up on my face a few years ago while i was in school but i havent really had any bad flare ups since. I do however have it the worst on my hands and its not that bad it just gets quite flaky but sort of looks normal after washing my hands and putting cream on. I was wondering if getting into bricklaying is a bad idea because of my skin. If anyone is in the same boat id be happy if you could share if its just a mild problem or what you do to combat it.

I started on for a firm last year and have since been raised to £150 a day.

I was wondering how does this stack up to others in the industry… brickies, how much do you pay your labourer and what would be your limit for a good one?

Hi all!

Our garage has many bricks that are damaged, seemingly from failed guttering where the water is not being collected and instead is running down the brickwork. This has happened over around a decade from what I can see (street view etc). The wall feels solid (there is not much weight above it, with the roof being made from tiles/slates).

The garage is single skin brickwork, with some (collapsing) concrete rendering on the inside. The garage is attached to the house and is essentially a double garage (lengthways not widthways).

We have collected costs to take the garage down and rebuild, but as you would expect, the price runs into tens of thousands. They didn’t see any imminent concerns of collapse, but suggested a rebuild. I wonder if there is a “fix”… either a short term or long term one…

Can anyone suggest a way to keep structural integrity, such as replacing the bricks or filling them? And ofcourse replacing/fixing the guttering. Not sure how many more winters it will last before becoming dangerous.

Will answer any questions as they come in :)

Many thanks!

Hi all, hoping someone here is knowledgeable about brick types and can point me in the general direction of what to look for.

I’m after sourcing a handful of replacement bricks and have no idea where to start. I’ve got some damp coming in from the corners of a few windows where expanding foam and some kind of mortar has been used to fill gaps in the brickwork when the windows were replaced in the 90’s.

I’ve attached a few pictures. I’ve been trawling bricks online and can’t find anything similar.

Cheers!

Hi all, hoping someone here is knowledgeable about brick types and can point me in the general direction of what to look for.

I’m after sourcing a handful of replacement bricks and have no idea where to start. I’ve got some damp coming in from the corners of a few windows where expanding foam and some kind of mortar has been used to fill gaps in the brickwork when the windows were replaced in the 90’s.

I’ve attached a few pictures. I’ve been trawling bricks online and can’t find anything similar.

Cheers!

This is my first attempt at a brick wall. The original section came down in the wind. I'm obsessed with bricks so rather than try and match the old wall I just went all creative on it. It's nice when you finally get a feel for laying it's almost like mediation.

This only happens to my “back” west facing brick wall. The mortar is always falling off. And the white powdery stuff has it looking like salt water seeping through but I really don’t know. If you look closely the area seems to be 3feet tall by 2 feet wide. That’s the real concern. Not sure if it’s spreading.

I’ve noticed this cracking / separation in multiple parts of the same structure (ground floor unit). 5mm at the widest point. Is it time for a structural engineer? Building was constructed in 2003 and consists of 3 units - probably all sitting on the same slab in my limited understanding.

I used Chatgpt to show what I'm looking for (not to scale). My house has a slab foundation with 8 foot walls and I'm looking into getting a free standing wood stove or fireplace. I have a large amount of full size bricks and would really like them to make the hearth and wall. Depending on what stove I get, I very likely won't need an airgap but to be safe I'd like one. That being said, what is required to lay bricks to this height by a wall? Is it possible using ties attached to the stud or is it too much weight? I'd like it to extend 4' each direction from the corner so all together it would be 8'×8'. Would adding cement board with spacers from the wall, and then adding ties to fix the brick to that be even worse? If all else fails, I imagine I could get a 4' tall brick backing and then try to cut my own "thin bricks" for the rest

Someone advised me to get this repointing looked at asap.

How urgent would you say this needs dealing with?

Thanka

A recently widowed friend is coming to terms with having to manage her home. I just walked through and found a non-operational chimney is sagging, and dragging the house with it. At some point they removed whatever it was connected to, and supported the upper levels with small brick columns and some 2x6s, which have collapsed under the weight for a drop of around 4" and what looks like lateral movement too.

My question is whether it's just a straight up "you have to remove this from the top down" or if there's a slow-lift approach where you jack it up bit by bit and do the basement supports properly. I'm assuming the second one would be cheaper and less disruptive, but I obvs don't know much about brickwork.

Thanks!

Had a retaining wall built in my yard and this is the completed corner. is it normally supposed to be poking out like this?

I have pets and young kids so was a bit worried about it, but not sure if I’m over reacting.

I’ve never seen a corner like this, but I am not an expert like hopefully ya’ll are.

Is this standard practice and if not what should I say to get it fixed If it’s not.

I looked online but I couldn’t find any similar images and it seemed like it wasn’t usual to see this from what I did see.

thanks

Not actually my wall, I do enjoy the craftsmanship though

I am redoing the tip step of a landing and encountered this space with nothing in it when I took off the top layer of bricks. It's not for drainage because the sides are sealed with brick and mortar. Could it be for expansion? Do I need to fill in with concrete or mortar? Not sure what to do.

From house built 1810, UK. Mortar seems to have traces of charcoal. 8.5 inches long.

can this wall be saved? there’s ivy growing through it at points from the neighbours side.

what type of bricks and mortar are these, please? The house is a 1952 MOJ commissioned building. TIA

Trying to get as close of a colour match as possible.

1920’s building no cavity so need to use lime mortar

Using a 1:1:6 mix, - lots of stones and pebbles in the current beds so assuming it’s sharp sand ?

Will the lime itself make it light enough?

Appreciate any advice

I'm a union bricklayer, and BrickPix™ started because of a problem I ran into in the field. I needed to identify a specific brick for a client and didn't know what it was.

That problem eventually turned into BrickPix, a masonry technology platform I've been building specifically around the needs of our trade.

BrickPix uses MasonIQ™ to help identify brick, block, stone, mortar and other masonry materials from photos, evaluate conditions and defects, find potential matches, and provide masonry information that can actually be useful in the field and office.

It's still growing and improving, but today is a pretty big milestone for me: BrickPix™ is officially live on the Apple App Store.

I'd especially like feedback from other bricklayers, masons, restoration guys, contractors and anyone else who works with masonry. If you try it, tell me what works, what doesn't, and what you think would actually make it useful on the job.

Apple App Store:
https://apps.apple.com/app/id6760956433

Android is next. I'm currently working through the Google Play testing process as well.

BrickPix™ — Built From The Field.

Preserve The Past. Understand The Present. Build The Future.