On 2 Jul 2004 11:07:36 -0700, (N. Thornton) wrote:

(Andrew Gabriel) wrote in message ...

It's silly to point if you're about to render. The unpointed
surface will provide a much better key for the render, and if
you are applying the right pressure, the gaps will be filled
anyway. Do remember to PVA the brick.

First it depends on the depth of the gaps and how much pressure is
applied when rendering. Second it literally takes about 2 minutes to
repoint quite a big area with a glove. Its just a way to ensure you
get max strength there. It doesnt always matter, often doesnt in fact,
but Victorian buildings are sometimes marginal and those ones need any
strength they can get. With those ones filling the mortar gaps fully
does matter, so I think its worth 2 minutes to avoid a risk.

It was not so much pointing, more just filling the crevices before
spreading on the render coat. A couple of the bricks were actually loose
so I wanted to stabilise them. Didn't know about the glove trick, but as
it was all to be covered I just offered up a blade of muck and shoved it
in the gaps with a small trowel. It didn't take any significant time.

Phil
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