A Guide In Masonry Repair
The construction material that has been long valued for durability and strength is the brick. In fact, there are so many buildings made of bricks that you can see standing up to today. But you need to take note that masonry also has its weakness. That is why it is important for you to call a professional right away after you will discover some great moisture damage and crumbling bricks. But if you will discover that the mortar joints are decaying, then you really need to do something about it. This article will help you learn how you can replace a bad mortar joint so that you the structural integrity of your brick work will be prolonged and preserved.
First, you should use some tools. The power tools that you will need are the rotary hammer drill that comes with a flat chisel head bit and an angle grinder with a 4 to 4.5 inch diamond blade. You will need to make use of a flat blade that will press the new mortar to the joints, as well as a tuck and pointer trowel. A joint raker or any other similar tool will also be needed in order to shape and smooth the wet paste. This will also require a bag of mortar that will be mixed inside a bucket.
It is important to know how bad the problem is so that a successful masonry will be done. You can do this by using a house key and scratch it on the joints between the brick. You need to know that solid mortar does not crumble so if it will come out in chunks, then you really need to have it replaced. After gathering this information, it is important to use an angle grinder to create a horizontal cut below and above every joint. After the bad sections will be cut loose, the hammer drill will be working through the grooves and will chisel them out of the wall. The new grooves can be cleaned out using a stiff paintbrush.
Once the bad mortar is removed, a new batch of mortar should be mixed up. You should mix the mortar with water based on what is written on the insturctions, take note that the consistency of the mortar must be like a thick peanut butter. A glob of paste must be placed on top of the trowel and the trowel should be placed in the empty groove. The mortar will be tightly packed between the bricks using a tuck pointer. It is also important to make sure that the paste will not harden once the grooves are filled in with the new mortar. A new masoned joint usually is ready to strike after thirty minutes of application. It is important for you to always hire the services of a professional so that you can have a successful masonry repair.