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Hi just wondering if any one knows about bricks and mortar
I am very concerned as bricks are cracking and mortar is very sandy and comes off very easily
It is also very patchy in colour as we paid extra for white mortar
And throughout it has smears
I do know it has had 3 acid washes
The house is new bricks were done November 2016
I am getting mortar testing nexteeek done
Would like to hear you feed back
You should have checked the mortar at the brickwork stage..why didn't you?
Cover before here (excuse the pun) many times
To date there is no resolution on that post
"You will need to get an engineer to check & verify that the brickwork "is fit for purpose as per AS3700"
From the photos It appears they have used a plasticiser with a lime based mortar which will effect durability and strength.
Do you have your engineering Specifications/Drawings? "
BTW, The reason the brickies use both plasticizers and lime based mortar is to facilitate speed of laying
Unfortunately this also damages the mechanical characteristics/properties of the mortar joint Goodluck
Hi
Yes I am getting mortar lab testing done nextweek
Would the engineer drawings state the mortar
As we did upgrade to white mortar
Also once brickwork was complete they then done an acid wash which we immediately noticed yellowish stained colour on the mortar
We told supervisor and then they had done another 2 acid washes and an efflorescence treatment
Thanks
You mean to tell me you don't have the Engineering Drawings?
they should be checked against whats built, the codes & Australian Standards ,etc
Upgrade mortar to what M3 or M4 , are you coastal, I noticed you have a BAL rating as well?
OT for what it's worth I can't stress how important structural Inspections are..yet battlers still ignore them?
To me, it looks like your brickwork was cleaned late and the mortar has set too hard, consequently, they used strong acid to clean bricks and the acid has caused surface pitting. That will also cause surface looseness/powdering of the mortar. It will be interesting to see your mortar test.
Yes i know
It was done 3/10/17
She did say it was a sloppy job and that the mortar was soft and results will only have the correct answer
Will post results once in
So currently I have an expert looking at all this
Also you are right I will highly recommend to get private building inspection with every stage as we only got it done at the end
Yes we have the bal in this estate which was an extra cost to our end
Mortar got tested 3/10/17
Waiting for results
I have attached afew other pics
But also I have noticed throughout again bricks are cracking
Will get pics soon when I go the the property in the next couple of days
Sylve A chemical analysis of the mortar will reveal aerating agents (unfortunately this test cost thousand$)
Do a thorough inspection yourself...Zoom your camera right in to the mortar..look for what appears as air bubbles HTH
OT..The inconsistency in the mortar could have been picked up and the mortar rejected at the brickwork inspection stage by your own engineer.
The additional photos you posted definitely show excessive acid etching. Your mortar test will show if it meets BCA standards.
I prefer 1:1:6 mortar (cement, lime, sand) but many brickies now use plasticiser additives instead of lime. If used correctly (in accordance with manufacturers instructions) they will not adversely affect strength of the mortar, but like everything else it is up to the skill and care of the tradies on site.
The bottom line is that you have cosmetically damaged mortar at the very least.
Hi
Here are afew more I took today
I'm not an expert nor in mortar or bricks but I really feel this is very poor workmanship
I have also going to the property Nextdoor which has just been built and mortar is smooth as and clean no mortar coming off just by running your finger through
I am still waiting on this mortar lab testing which results should be in nextweek
Thanks for your comments
Do you think the acid washes could of effect the mortar strength and be causing the bricks to crack ?
Do you think the acid washes could of effect the mortar strength and be causing the bricks to crack ?
Do you think the acid washes could of effect the mortar strength and be causing the bricks to crack ?
Are there photos of the bricks actually cracking, in the photos above the mortar joints are cracking ?
It appears you have rolled joints which are generally characterised
by a hard outer mortar surface. Once the acid etches the outer surface it erodes
beneath the mortar should be hard and durable...not weak or flakey?
Yes bricks are cracking both horizontal and diagonal and chunks on the face of bricks are missing
When you running your fingers across the mortar it's sandy comes off
Not only that they have fibbed to me as stated that in one off the pictures there was a massive gap blow out and supervisor stated that was mortar but the mortar testing expert told me it's not (it's very white )
The bricks have smears and some white power looking on the bricks
These people are insane if they think that they will get their last payment
It's just getting tiring now as this has been going on for a very long time now
And they keep beating around the bush
Can they fix it that's the question .....
They can't give me an answer
I will go on the weekend again and double check the brick cracks
sylve Thanks for the update...
Some builders prefer to treat clients like mushrooms
Hide & keep you in the dark & feed you Cow Manure
Please leave a PM if you prefer..but this information does help others
Results are in
Mortar is a fail