Hello World! Welcome Friends! Over time, bricks get old and the mortar joining them becomes weak, which might cause the building to collapse. However, you can replace the old bricks with new ones and use fresh mortar without necessarily demolishing the whole wall.
You need to replace the damaged brick and mortar selectively. Avoid using cement on houses built before 1919, instead use lime mortar, which minimizes evaporation through the bricks.
If your home and chimney brick wall is old and worn out, you should replace it as soon as possible. Here you will learn the basic knowledge about how you should replace old brick and mortar in your home or chimney.
But what are the signs that tell you that it’s time to fix or repair your old brick and masonry?
Signs That Your Old Brick and Mortar Needs Replacement
Your home structural integrity depends on the strength of the brickwork. When bricks and mortar deteriorate with age, they pose a risk of weak structure or even collapsing.
Therefore, it’s imperative to examine your old brick wall to identify any replacement needs.
You should look for the following in your old brick wall that needs replacement.
- Cracked, chipped loose or crumbling bricks.
- Damp patches from water damage
- Cracking on the wall
- Bulging walls.
Mortar joints weaken due to extreme moisture, temperature, or pressure from the weight of the bricks. Despite that mortar has a lifespan of about 25 to 35 years, you might start noticing cracks and it may start to fall off.
There are two methods of replacing old mortar − repointing involves removing the damaged mortar and adding new mortar. On the other hand, tuckpointing is replacing old mortar with almost the same colored-mortar and adding contrasting fillets on the centers of the new joints.
Supplies and Equipment that You Need for the Whole Process
- Cold chisel
- Professional hammer
- Hose and nozzle
- Wire brush
- Trowel
- Tuck-pointing trowel
- Tarp and Sponge
Avoid using power tools as they may cause more damage than good due to vibrations.
How to Replace Old Brick
Cut the old brick carefully and turn it around to hide the damaged side. Then fill the cut face with tinted lime mortar. Repeat the process on all the damaged old brick.
Remove the damaged bricks completely, then replace them with new bricks of matching color, texture, size and durability. Place them in the same way as the others. You can order bricks from suppliers who are still making handmade bricks so that they match as much as possible.
Give the new bricks and mortar time to blend with the surroundings. Avoid using low-quality bricks that have undergone incomplete processing as they are dangerous and pose a serious risk.
How to Replace the Mortar
When old mortar starts to crack and fall off, it’s a wake-up call to chisel it out and trowels in new mortal. However, the work must demand the utmost care to prevent further damage. Use hand tools and lime mortar to prevent compromising the structural integrity.
Step 1 − The process overview
If your brick house or chimney is less than 50 years old, you can repoint or tuckpoint it with the modern cement-based mortar. However, modern cement mortar will be hard to remove in a future replacement.
Use lime mortar on the house built before 1950 by mixing lime putty and sand.
Step 2 − Scrape out the bed/horizontal joints
Use a chisel and an engineer’s hammer to scrape out the old, damaged horizontal joints. Remove the mortal up to 1 inch deep. Avoid electric grinders as you may end-up disfiguring the surrounding bricks.
Step 3 − Rake out the head/vertical joints
Next, move to the vertical joints and chisel away the old mortal with a 5-in-1 painter’s tool. Avoid hitting the edges of the bricks above or below.
Step 4 − Remove dust and debris on the wall
Use the wire brush to remove all the debris and then confirm that the blade of your tucking towel fits on the empty joints. If it’s still big, use an abrasive wheel to grind it down.
Then soak the wall with water until the brick starts to drip. Soaking is crucial as it prevents dry bricks from sucking all the moisture in the new mortal leading to poor curing. Wait overnight before filling the joints with the new mortal.
Step 5 − Prepare the mortal
Follow the directions on the bag and mix the mortar until it attains peanut butter texture and clings on an up-ended trowel.
Stand the mixture for 15 minutes and remix the water that forms on top of the mortar. Now the mortar is ready for use for up to 8 hours, but you should add water when it gets too dry.
Step 6 − Fill up the joints
Use the trowel to fill up the exposed joints and push it inside the joints with a tuck-pointing trowel. Remove voids by applying trowel slicing movement and then putting in more mortal to fill the joints.
When you have finished filling the bed joints, move to the head joints. Then smooth and compact the mortar. Use the trowel’s flat face to scrape off any excess mortar off the bricks.
Step 7 − Clean the wall with a brush
When the mortar becomes firm by touch, use a brush to remove dry mortar crumbs. Brush the wall diagonally as brushing parallel to the joints will remove the fresh mortar.
Then carefully use a sponge to clean the brick faces. Protect the new mortar from sunlight, heavy rainfall, or wind with a tarp and mist it daily to keep it moist.
Click the links below for any posts you have missed:
Tips for Successful Replacement Window Installation
The Best Materials for a Stylish Home
Create a Hampton Style Living Space
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