An elderly neighbour has aked me to replace two imitation Yorkshire stone
coping stones (600mm x 300mm) on top of two brick pillars. I have no
experience of any bricklaying etc. I have cleaned alkl the old mortar off
the tops of the pillars and it was a very hard (stong) mix.

I have seen lots of posts on these groups with regards to 4:1, 5:1, use PVA
in the mix etc. What is the best mix for this job and how much will I need?
I presume that one bag of the stuff from Been & Queued will be enough but I
don't want to buy one bag, mix it up and then find there isn't enough. Also
is it better to wet the pillars and underside of the copings so that they
don't suck the water out of the mix?

Any help, tips etc. greatly appreciated.

Cheers

John

In article ,
"John" writes:
An elderly neighbour has aked me to replace two imitation Yorkshire stone
coping stones (600mm x 300mm) on top of two brick pillars. I have no
experience of any bricklaying etc. I have cleaned alkl the old mortar off
the tops of the pillars and it was a very hard (stong) mix.

I have seen lots of posts on these groups with regards to 4:1, 5:1, use PVA
in the mix etc. What is the best mix for this job and how much will I need?
I presume that one bag of the stuff from Been & Queued will be enough but I
don't want to buy one bag, mix it up and then find there isn't enough. Also
is it better to wet the pillars and underside of the copings so that they
don't suck the water out of the mix?

Any help, tips etc. greatly appreciated.

For that, I think I'd buy just one bag of the dry ready-mixed
sand and cement mortar. The mortar area is about the same as
for 14 bricks, minus the perps (verticals), and one bag should
easily do that.) It's probably around 4:1 or 5:1.
Roll or up-end the bag several times to mix the contents before
opening, which is easier than doing it after opening if you
aren't using the whole bag.

I wouldn't bother with PVA unless the stone overhangs and might
be prone to be knocked off. It's good on copings on top of half
brick walls where there's little mortar area and lots of overhang
leverage, so they almost always come loose when things bump them
or people sit/stand on them.

I wouldn't wet the bricks or stone. Stone won't have much suction
anyway, and if the bricks have a lot, they won't be any good
outside in the frost anyway.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

Andrew Gabriel wrote:
In article ,
"John" writes:
An elderly neighbour has aked me to replace two imitation Yorkshire stone
coping stones (600mm x 300mm) on top of two brick pillars. I have no
experience of any bricklaying etc. I have cleaned alkl the old mortar off
the tops of the pillars and it was a very hard (stong) mix.

I have seen lots of posts on these groups with regards to 4:1, 5:1, use PVA
in the mix etc. What is the best mix for this job and how much will I need?
I presume that one bag of the stuff from Been & Queued will be enough but I
don't want to buy one bag, mix it up and then find there isn't enough. Also
is it better to wet the pillars and underside of the copings so that they
don't suck the water out of the mix?

Any help, tips etc. greatly appreciated.

For that, I think I'd buy just one bag of the dry ready-mixed
sand and cement mortar. The mortar area is about the same as
for 14 bricks, minus the perps (verticals), and one bag should
easily do that.) It's probably around 4:1 or 5:1.
Roll or up-end the bag several times to mix the contents before
opening, which is easier than doing it after opening if you
aren't using the whole bag.

I wouldn't bother with PVA unless the stone overhangs and might
be prone to be knocked off. It's good on copings on top of half
brick walls where there's little mortar area and lots of overhang
leverage, so they almost always come loose when things bump them
or people sit/stand on them.

I wouldn't wet the bricks or stone. Stone won't have much suction
anyway, and if the bricks have a lot, they won't be any good
outside in the frost anyway.

You can alway check how absorbent the piers are a few days beforehand.

I'm only a diy brick layer but the mistake I used to make is fiddling
about with the joints etc too much too soon. Lay the mortar bed with a
few channels in the surface made with the trowel tip. Be bold, place the
coping stone straight down on the bed in the right position first time
and then tap down level with the handle of the trowel (clean the mortar
off first !!). If you are not happy with the position, lift it off, cut
away the mortar with the trowel and mix it back in with the rest of your
mix and start again. DONT be tempted to slide the stone around much - it
will lead to a weak joint. When you are happy with it, cut away any
mortar that squeezes out flush with the trowel tip. Then leave it alone
for a couple of hours and only then gently clean off any little bits
with a soft brush working from the corners inwards.

good luck

Bob

Mortar Mix


For that, I think I'd buy just one bag of the dry ready-mixed
sand and cement mortar. ..

It also comes in plastic tubs for a few pence more
which is easier to store it airtight if you only use a bit,
and always have some ready for little jobs..

[g]

"Andrew Gabriel" wrote in message
...
In article ,
"John" writes:
An elderly neighbour has aked me to replace two imitation Yorkshire stone
coping stones (600mm x 300mm) on top of two brick pillars. I have no
experience of any bricklaying etc. I have cleaned alkl the old mortar
off
the tops of the pillars and it was a very hard (stong) mix.

I have seen lots of posts on these groups with regards to 4:1, 5:1, use
PVA
in the mix etc. What is the best mix for this job and how much will I
need?
I presume that one bag of the stuff from Been & Queued will be enough but
I
don't want to buy one bag, mix it up and then find there isn't enough.
Also
is it better to wet the pillars and underside of the copings so that they
don't suck the water out of the mix?

Any help, tips etc. greatly appreciated.

For that, I think I'd buy just one bag of the dry ready-mixed
sand and cement mortar. The mortar area is about the same as
for 14 bricks, minus the perps (verticals), and one bag should
easily do that.) It's probably around 4:1 or 5:1.
Roll or up-end the bag several times to mix the contents before
opening, which is easier than doing it after opening if you
aren't using the whole bag.

I wouldn't bother with PVA unless the stone overhangs and might
be prone to be knocked off. It's good on copings on top of half
brick walls where there's little mortar area and lots of overhang
leverage, so they almost always come loose when things bump them
or people sit/stand on them.

I wouldn't wet the bricks or stone. Stone won't have much suction
anyway, and if the bricks have a lot, they won't be any good
outside in the frost anyway.

--
Andrew Gabriel

Andrew

I was working on an extension last summer and the bricklayer was wetting the
bricks as he said they were too dry and it was too hot.

The bricks were

http://www.beersltd.co.uk/view_produ...?code=BF000732

They are the ones my parents 40 year old house are built with. I borrowed a
few from the builder to replace the ones where my parents old boiler flue
used to be.

I suppose the weather makes a difference to wetting bricks.

Adam