Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Jul 15, 2009 12:35 am hi my new house has * brickwork,but i have a sample of the mortar which was taken from the cavity.It is orange and a small piece can be easily rubbed between the fingers and becomes sand. my question is should i be able to do this. http://s677.photobucket.com/albums/vv132/zaphod373/
Re: mortar? 3Jul 15, 2009 4:25 pm zaphod hi my new house has * brickwork,but i have a sample of the mortar which was taken from the cavity.It is orange and a small piece can be easily rubbed between the fingers and becomes sand. my question is should i be able to do this. How old is the mortar? Was it mixed properly? Taking a sample from the cavity is not a reliable way to test mortar as it may have just been a sandy piece that has fallen down there. The mortar when about a week old should resist scratching in the joint with a nail. A true test is done in a lab by men in white coats. Writing your name on concrete with a sample of mortar wont tell you anything about the hardness of the mortar, what do you compare it with? Do you ask your neighbours for a sample of theirs to compare hardness? Some sand sets as hard as a rock even without cement? Re: mortar? 4Jul 15, 2009 6:45 pm Writing your name on concrete with a sample of mortar wont tell you anything about the hardness of the mortar, what do you compare it with? Do you ask your neighbours for a sample of theirs to compare hardness? Some sand sets as hard as a rock even without cement?[/quote] Yes brickie its only a guide. Not a scientifeic test. Scientific tests are not always practical and dont alway give an indication of every batch that was mixed for the house. Otherthing to do is rub your fingers in between the dry mortar. You will notice poorly mixed mortar will break down very quickly. A good mix will not loose any granules. Re: mortar? 5Jul 15, 2009 7:36 pm borg Otherthing to do is rub your fingers in between the dry mortar. You will notice poorly mixed mortar will break down very quickly. A good mix will not loose any granules. Again, it all depends on sand type which will not tell you about mix proportions, ie, sand, cement, lime. Re: mortar? 6Jul 15, 2009 7:39 pm borg Scientific tests are not always practical and dont alway give an indication of every batch that was mixed for the house. But they do, as they sample from many areas of the house and dont rely on the man in a white coat writing his name on the concrete with one sample. Re: mortar? 7Jul 15, 2009 7:47 pm My example is just as an indication. Gives you and idea if it is being mixed properly. I usually go around the site on my projects pick up pieces randomly and make sure the pieces dont break up in your hand. But like you say if you want to take up legal processings the men in white coats will stand up a lot more in court. Re: mortar? 9Jul 15, 2009 8:07 pm Guys It's all good... We do the best we can with the tools we have. I am sure the first test was a simple answer. Nothing further, true not a real test, but could be consider something easy to do. Sampling in the lab will give an analysis of the materials and possibly an MPA rating. But only a sample taken at the batching, pressed etc will give a true indication of compressive and other tests It's been a big day for all of us. IMHO only Where you are coming from is where you are going to... Re: mortar? 11Jul 15, 2009 8:30 pm Well for me I racked up about 800Ks managed to avoid a rainoff waste, transfer the lads to another site (indoors) n got 40cu in Also picked up daughter n G/son from the Perth airport. Back home, warm as toast ...and a rum Where you are coming from is where you are going to... Re: mortar? 14Jul 16, 2009 3:45 pm ok guys , thanks for the responses. If the mortar mix is supposed to be consistent and measured carefully then a piece from anywhere would be a good indication. But the mortar colour on my house (which is not finished) ranges from grey to orange so the batches are not mixed consistently. The house I live in was built 25 years ago and I have drilled mortar and removed bricks for airconditioners and the mortar is like concrete, and small pieces cannot be rubbed and turned into sand. I think that having as3000 standards is only a guide to work to and not a law to abide by, therefore a building company can use any mix at all and I would have to accept it. The only time I could get it fixed is if it fell down, Tell me if i'm wrong, cheers guys Re: mortar? 16Jul 16, 2009 5:14 pm I just found some mortar from my 25yo house and it is like concrete. I can write with it jump on it and cannot crush it without a hammer. My new house mortar when stood on with sand shoes crushes into powder. Standards may have changed for the worse. Re: mortar? 18Jul 16, 2009 6:09 pm here is my second attempt at posting a pic http://s677.photobucket.com/albums/vv132/zaphod373/
Re: mortar? 20Jul 16, 2009 6:21 pm Hmmm... totally agree withe you brickie I bet that bloke has a bad cough in the mornings Where you are coming from is where you are going to... Hi, I am planning to select San Selmo reclaimed original for the fascade of my build. I have seen many photos on line of the brick varying from a rustic to a neat finish.… 0 4577 Building Standards; Getting It Right! Hi, sorry if this is the wrong place - I’m new to the property/building journey (trying to buy my first home) so not sure where/who to go with these sorts of… 0 19155 2 8872 |