Prompted to some extent by the Scottish schools discussion, my thoughts
have turned to a wall I need to fix this summer.

It's at the front of the house, at the boundary with the pavement, is
about 3 feet high and consists of two leaves: A retaining wall (the
driveway is above pavement level) and a facing wall in blue brick. The
retaining wall seems sound but a couple of metres of the facing wall has
bulged away from it to a significant degree. Although it looks like a
Flemish bond pattern, it turns out that what looks like the headers are
actually half bricks, so the two leaves aren't tied together. It's
probably taken the best part of 150 years to get to this state but since
it's in imminent danger of collapse, I need to fix it.

Clearly, the rebuilt structure will need to be tied together, as should
the remainder that I don't need to rebuild. The question is, what's the
best way to do this? Ideally, I would cut out the retaining wall to
take proper headers, but I only have the bricks (and half bricks) that
come out of the wall and I suspect that matching replacements will hard
to source. Conventional ties are fine for a whole new wall and remedial
ties for securing a structure in situ (like the part that doesn't need
rebuilding), but this is neither. I had been thinking of adding some
masonry screws into the retaining wall to coincide with the mortar layer
of the rebuilt leaf (I know these won't last as well as stainless ties
would, but should last for quite some time) but maybe someone has a
better idea?

I'm also wondering what mortar to use. The original structure was
clearly built with a lime mortar, most of which is now gone. I'm
guessing I should use lime again, but it seems quite a faff, so I'm
wondering if it's necessary on blue bricks and a low wall. Of course,
nothing will match the existing unless I re-point the whole wall.

Any thoughts or experiences chaps?

On Saturday, 16 April 2016 11:53:39 UTC+1, GMM wrote:
Prompted to some extent by the Scottish schools discussion, my thoughts
have turned to a wall I need to fix this summer.

It's at the front of the house, at the boundary with the pavement, is
about 3 feet high and consists of two leaves: A retaining wall (the
driveway is above pavement level) and a facing wall in blue brick. The
retaining wall seems sound but a couple of metres of the facing wall has
bulged away from it to a significant degree. Although it looks like a
Flemish bond pattern, it turns out that what looks like the headers are
actually half bricks, so the two leaves aren't tied together. It's
probably taken the best part of 150 years to get to this state but since
it's in imminent danger of collapse, I need to fix it.

Clearly, the rebuilt structure will need to be tied together, as should
the remainder that I don't need to rebuild. The question is, what's the
best way to do this? Ideally, I would cut out the retaining wall to
take proper headers, but I only have the bricks (and half bricks) that
come out of the wall and I suspect that matching replacements will hard
to source. Conventional ties are fine for a whole new wall and remedial
ties for securing a structure in situ (like the part that doesn't need
rebuilding), but this is neither. I had been thinking of adding some
masonry screws into the retaining wall to coincide with the mortar layer
of the rebuilt leaf (I know these won't last as well as stainless ties
would, but should last for quite some time) but maybe someone has a
better idea?

I'm also wondering what mortar to use. The original structure was
clearly built with a lime mortar, most of which is now gone. I'm
guessing I should use lime again, but it seems quite a faff, so I'm
wondering if it's necessary on blue bricks and a low wall. Of course,
nothing will match the existing unless I re-point the whole wall.

Any thoughts or experiences chaps?

Your probably down to using something from this range of retrofit metalwork/ties.

In message , GMM
writes
Clearly, the rebuilt structure will need to be tied together, as should
the remainder that I don't need to rebuild. The question is, what's
the best way to do this? Ideally, I would cut out the retaining wall
to take proper headers, but I only have the bricks (and half bricks)
that come out of the wall and I suspect that matching replacements will
hard to source. Conventional ties are fine for a whole new wall and
remedial ties for securing a structure in situ (like the part that
doesn't need rebuilding), but this is neither. I had been thinking of
adding some masonry screws into the retaining wall to coincide with the
mortar layer of the rebuilt leaf (I know these won't last as well as
stainless ties would, but should last for quite some time) but maybe
someone has a better idea?

I'm also wondering what mortar to use. The original structure was
clearly built with a lime mortar, most of which is now gone. I'm
guessing I should use lime again, but it seems quite a faff, so I'm
wondering if it's necessary on blue bricks and a low wall. Of course,
nothing will match the existing unless I re-point the whole wall.

Any thoughts or experiences chaps?

Timber frame construction uses a stainless tab with an *eye* for nailing
to the inner timber. You could screw some of these to your inner wall to
coincide with the courses.

I have been told that 6:1:1 (washed sand, white cement, lime) gives a
reasonable match.

--
Tim Lamb

On Saturday, 16 April 2016 11:53:39 UTC+1, GMM wrote:
Prompted to some extent by the Scottish schools discussion, my thoughts
have turned to a wall I need to fix this summer.

It's at the front of the house, at the boundary with the pavement, is
about 3 feet high and consists of two leaves: A retaining wall (the
driveway is above pavement level) and a facing wall in blue brick. The
retaining wall seems sound but a couple of metres of the facing wall has
bulged away from it to a significant degree. Although it looks like a
Flemish bond pattern, it turns out that what looks like the headers are
actually half bricks, so the two leaves aren't tied together. It's
probably taken the best part of 150 years to get to this state but since
it's in imminent danger of collapse, I need to fix it.

Clearly, the rebuilt structure will need to be tied together, as should
the remainder that I don't need to rebuild. The question is, what's the
best way to do this? Ideally, I would cut out the retaining wall to
take proper headers, but I only have the bricks (and half bricks) that
come out of the wall and I suspect that matching replacements will hard
to source. Conventional ties are fine for a whole new wall and remedial
ties for securing a structure in situ (like the part that doesn't need
rebuilding), but this is neither. I had been thinking of adding some
masonry screws into the retaining wall to coincide with the mortar layer
of the rebuilt leaf (I know these won't last as well as stainless ties
would, but should last for quite some time) but maybe someone has a
better idea?

I'm also wondering what mortar to use. The original structure was
clearly built with a lime mortar, most of which is now gone. I'm
guessing I should use lime again, but it seems quite a faff, so I'm
wondering if it's necessary on blue bricks and a low wall. Of course,
nothing will match the existing unless I re-point the whole wall.

Any thoughts or experiences chaps?

If you use steel ties of any sort they must be stainless. Anything else will not only not survive long term, but will break both walls up too once it rusts. SS wire resinned into SDSed holes is relatively easy. Loop it in the new wall's mortar courses.

Lime is not a faff in any way, so I'm not sure what you've been reading. It's easier to clean up than cement mortar.

If you need a few more bricks, salvage yards will likely have some to match.


NT