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Retaining wall project

28K views 147 replies 24 participants last post by  superseal 
#1 ·
Filled the last two weeks doing small jobs just trying to stay busy whilst the Township drug their feet approving my wall project permit.

It's my hometown actually, so I know the folks involved and their actually a pretty good bunch of peeps :rolleyes:

Even small jobs like this need to go though the planning commission which meets every Tuesday night and through zoning. Usually takes about a week to gather all the signatures then your good to go if everything's cool. Seems as though one guy is on vacation so that's what's holding things up.

Never mind, I'm gettin' started anyway :whistling... soon as I get this round in :thumbup:
 

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#77 ·
Right, and i've tried furrowing with solid units an have had little success. When I lay stone the stone has no pressure relief system (core holes or frog) When I lay stone I make a bed solid thickness. The unit barely gets tapped, more just installed. I do the same with a solid unit brick. But I can't install them nearly as fast as a cored or frogged brick (one of the reasons i don't understand when the british brickies say they lay with the frog up).

In my limited experience solid bricks are a *****. They're slow because there's no where for the mud to go. If I could get $40 sqft like i do for natural stone it would be worth it but at $1 a brick it's tough
 
#82 ·
In my limited experience solid bricks are a *****. They're slow because there's no where for the mud to go.
I was taught long ago that when laying any brick, the back side get's "lowered" into place first, and you then tip the front of the brick to the line. Even with frogged or cored brick, it brings a ton of excess mud to the front of the brick which is ideal, as it keeps excess droppings out of the cavity as well as fills the bed joints completely, making jointing a breeze.

I've tried to relay this to my employees for years, to little avail. We recently finished a 25K brick home, and the garage door jambs were completely exposed after we laid them, enough that you could clearly see behind the entire panel, until the finished door jambs were installed by the carpenters. I laid 2 of the panels, while one of my other masons laid another. It was clear to see the huge difference in mortar droppings (or lack) of between the 3 panels by using my method.......:thumbsup:
 
#78 ·
Back in school 30 years ago, we only used solid brick due to the fact we reclaimed them after projects and they were easier to clean. Teacher would always say, "spread and furrow, spread and furrow". He would additionally always say, "and don't hit the level" :laughing:

Well, I did eventually learn to spread and furrow, but hitting the level :whistling :no:

Rest in peace Franco, you were a great man :thumbup:

Cores are filled; 10 bags of concrete mix with a little additional bar sand and cement and I can lay the back course now. Probably clean it up tomorrow and start pointing and removing additional soil for drainage.
 

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#91 · (Edited)
Back in school 30 years ago, we only used solid brick due to the fact we reclaimed them after projects and they were easier to clean. Teacher would always say, "spread and furrow, spread and furrow". He would additionally always say, "and don't hit the level" :laughing:
I remember reading an article some years ago about a very old guy who made 10 cents per brick cleaning old mortar off with a cane knife. He would sit on a crate all day and slice/strike the mortar off each side. Heck of a way to make a living. Wonder how it is normally done today?

BTW SS, wall is coming out nice!
 
#83 ·
I was taught that as well, but don't think i've ever really done it. I tend to lay the end that's going against the installed brick first, the push the exposed end down. I should really try to remember to use your method because jointing always takes me way too long since i have to fill a significant amount before i can joint.
 
#84 ·
My employees are the same way, they joint with a trowel in one hand and a sled or S jointer in the other. I usually have a jointer in one hand and a coffee in the other....:thumbsup: I drives me nuts to joint behind either one of them, and the times the laborer does joints for us, he's always complaining about their open joints as well............
 
#85 ·
Not me, I always gauge head joint side flush with the last brick I laid and then tap the other side to the line.

I try to gauge the mortar bed thickness carefully when laying it down and usually end up with little squeeze out. Angle of the trowel during furrowing plays a big part; steep equals thick joint, shallow for skinny joints.
 
#86 ·
So anyway, didn't get done what I thought I would today. My B-Day is Tues. next week and the wifey surprised me with a little get away so were leaving tomorrow. Just squared things up and I 'll get back it sometime next week.

Looking forward to some R & R after the recent MIL scare and this friggin' heat wave...she's doing well btw, right back to her miserable self again :blink: so I know every things cool ;)

I know, I know, I'm a little outta order in progress here...who the hell points up after cleaning anyway. :rolleyes:

Got the back band laid and struck up, then cleaned the raked out front exposure with a mild dilution of Sure Klean 600 detergent. Works quite well and not as caustic as muriatic.

Still a few thing to do here, so I'll be back for some pointing, parging, drainage work and capping sometime next week :thumbup:

In the meantime, I think I'm gonna try me a Mai Tai:thumbup1:
 

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#88 ·
Back at it again on my BDay none the less :thumbup: and I gotta remove more dirt for backfill. Inspector said he wanted to see it before I closed up it up for good so I made the call.
My damn boots are gettin' tired of diggin'!

Still gotta waterproof the back side, with exception to the weeps of course :whistling, set some drain pipe, fabric and stone and top it off with some of the dirt and sod I saved.

While I wait for him, I think I'll start pointing her up.

This July heat is friggin' nuts...I'm hiding under umbrellas like I'm at the beach :rolleyes:
 

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#89 ·
Here's some pointing after the fact :laughing: But at least I know it'll be one color and I'll barely have to clean it again.

Starting to look like a wall it is :thumbup:
 

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#92 ·
Pointed the rest of the wall up this morning under intense heat and the threat of boomer's all afternoon.

Was gonna use an asphalt based sealer on the backfill side, but changed my mind and just used Thoro foundation coating.
Little Acryl 60, soup it up and brush it on.

Hey, they were giving away free t-shirts, what can I tell ya :whistling

I'll give it a quick second coat tomorrow, then start with backfill.
 

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#95 ·
So I stop by today to second coat the backside with Thoroseal foundation coating - yep, basically the non pigmented variety of the old stand by Thoroseal. I use the pigmented bags for interior basements a lot, but when you don't care about color, you can save a few bucks per bag going with this stuff.

Cut your acryl 3:1 and whip it up with a drill mixer. Let it dwell a bit, then smack it again. Now your ready to apply. Tampico brushes work well here.

With all the acryl - yesterdays first coat is hard as a rock :thumbup:
 

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#96 ·
Thats the nice thing about Thoro with the acryl,... cures out hard and fast and ready for backfill.

Pretty sure I got some pipe and fabric laying around the shop,...
Thats next on the list so back to work I go :whistling

Lets see what I can come up with :rolleyes:
 

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#97 ·
Lost the boots today - their in rehab due to over exhaustion :whistling

Getting late too :mad: ain't gonna be able to pick up another load of stone till tomorrow :clap:
 

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#108 ·
Well, it poured a helling last night and on and off most of today, so I was able to inspect behind the unfilled wall section this morning when I got there.

I didn't see much water behind the wall so the weeps must be workin' :thumbup:

Time to fill this puppy up and call it an early day. Haven't had one of them in awhile :no:

4 tons of 3/4" washed is what it took,...no bucket scaffold required :laughing:
 

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#111 ·
Went shopping for PA Thermal Bluestone treads yesterday calling around to see who had what...Wanted to check out the stock of my favorite two places and sometimes you get lucky, sometimes you don't.

Last time in Galantino about a week ago, I definitely wasn't happy with what I saw laying around. Stock was depleted and only thing left were chipped, discolored shunned stuff.

I do know however, several places that handle this stuff, so I went on over to my second fav., State Road Supply in Drexel Hill. Turns out they had a nice little pallet way in the back that caught my eye ;)

That's gonna be my cap I said,... just gotta flame some edges :thumbup:

Was planning on 2" being 1 1/2" but I planned wrong :sad:,...this stuff is 2" + and much heavier than it looks :blink:

Gosh dang it, what did I get myself into :laughing:
 

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