mia700•1mo ago

Took me 10 years to figure out this mortar mixing trick

I been laying brick for over a decade and it just hit me last Tuesday on a job in Cleveland. Everyone talks about keeping your mortar consistent but nobody mentions that the water temperature matters way more than they say. I was out on a cold morning and my mix kept setting up too fast, so I grabbed hot water from the jobsite sink instead of cold. Made a huge difference - the mortar stayed workable a good 20 minutes longer without getting crusty. My foreman walked over and asked what I did different because my joints looked cleaner than the other guys. I checked my mix with a thermometer and the sweet spot seems to be around 70 degrees. Has anyone else played around with water temp or am I late to the party on this?

3 comments

3 Comments

victor_robinson1mo ago

Hold up, you might want to check that thermometer again. I've been messing with water temps for years and 70 degrees is actually on the cool side for most mortar mixes. In my experience, the real sweet spot is closer to 85 degrees, especially if you're using a standard type N or S mortar. The warm water slows down the set time a bit, but if you go too hot past like 95 degrees it can actually make the portland cement flash set on you and ruin the whole batch. Just a heads up so you don't end up with a bucket of rocks like I did the first time I tried this.

jessica1301mo ago

So wait, you're telling me I've been stirring mortar like a caveman for 10 years and all I needed was warm water? lmao. That's like finding out you've been putting ketchup on a hot dog when mustard was the move the whole time. Definitely trying this on my next patio job because my mix gets crusty faster than my attitude on Monday mornings.

oliverhernandez1mo ago

@victor_robinson's right about that 85 degree sweet spot. I learned that one the hard way too.