Hi
I need to repoint the blue bricks at the base of my house. Can I use
ordinary mortar for this? I am not concerned with preserving the
heritage or anything like that (I have found some '5 lime' mortar for
that purpose but it's for heritage buildings and costs more than twice
as much as ordinary mortar!).

Thank you

On 7/25/2010 5:02 PM, Maria wrote:
Hi
I need to repoint the blue bricks at the base of my house. Can I use
ordinary mortar for this? I am not concerned with preserving the
heritage or anything like that (I have found some '5 lime' mortar for
that purpose but it's for heritage buildings and costs more than twice
as much as ordinary mortar!).

Thank you

Ps - sorry should have said - house is Victorian with suspended wooden
floors, and there is an underfloor vent in the layers of engineering bricks.

"Maria" wrote in message
...
Hi
I need to repoint the blue bricks at the base of my house. Can I use
ordinary mortar for this? I am not concerned with preserving the heritage
or anything like that (I have found some '5 lime' mortar for that purpose
but it's for heritage buildings and costs more than twice as much as
ordinary mortar!).



By mortar do you mean cement?
My manhole chambers are made with eng.bricks and ordinary cement, the grey
stuff or OPC.
Better to mix your own mortar I would say.

4:1 sand/cement plus a splodge of plasticiser eg., Feb-mix, or washing up
liquid if it's only a small amount of mortar you are mixing.

mark

On Jul 25, 5:02*pm, Maria wrote:
Hi
I need to repoint the blue bricks at the base of my house. Can I use
ordinary mortar for this? I am not concerned with preserving the
heritage or anything like that (I have found some '5 lime' mortar for
that purpose but it's for heritage buildings and costs more than twice
as much as ordinary mortar!).

Thank you

1:1:6 would be fine


NT

Maria wrote:
Hi
I need to repoint the blue bricks at the base of my house. Can I use
ordinary mortar for this? I am not concerned with preserving the
heritage or anything like that (I have found some '5 lime' mortar for
that purpose but it's for heritage buildings and costs more than twice
as much as ordinary mortar!).

Thank you

sand and cement is fine, about 4:1, unless it's below the dpc, in which case
you're better making it 3:1, and a minimum of 12mm deep

--
Phil L
RSRL Tipster Of The Year 2008

Maria wrote:
Hi
I need to repoint the blue bricks at the base of my house. Can I use
ordinary mortar for this? I am not concerned with preserving the
heritage or anything like that (I have found some '5 lime' mortar for
that purpose but it's for heritage buildings and costs more than twice
as much as ordinary mortar!).

Thank you
Sod heritage. Engineering bricks are used because they resist getting
damp and spalling in frost.

So use good strong 2:1 mortar here!

If you want to match rubbish lime mortar color wise, use white cement.

Phil L wrote:
Maria wrote:
Hi
I need to repoint the blue bricks at the base of my house. Can I use
ordinary mortar for this? I am not concerned with preserving the
heritage or anything like that (I have found some '5 lime' mortar for
that purpose but it's for heritage buildings and costs more than twice
as much as ordinary mortar!).

Thank you

sand and cement is fine, about 4:1, unless it's below the dpc, in which case
you're better making it 3:1, and a minimum of 12mm deep


2:1 with waterproofing additive below DPC. Let's not sod about here.;-)