Damp, tried everything, what now?

[Flyfisher]

Once you have lots of holes, is a wide bolster at an angle not able to knock out the remaining mortar between the holes? Not an easy job though, however you tackle it, but somehow I can't see it beating your tenacity!

 

[Zebra]

Hmm, wide bolster, don't have one, but yes, perhaps. At the moment I'm using an old chisel which does the same thing. Problem is depth again though, as I'm having to knock out the entire nine inches because I can only do it from one side.....
Yes, tenacity, that's the key.
You want to try doing it with hooves though...

 

[middi]

The best way to remove horizontal bricks from a solid wall when mortar is a bit solid:-

1) -- with the use of a 10 inch long, 8mm diameter masonary drill bit, dill out the vertical mortar of the brick joint that needs to be removed.
2) --With a wide bolster tap the brick at the joint above and it will easily fall out
3)--Once one brick has been removed the rest of the bricks are relatively easy to remove by following the same procedure.
4)---All the bricks will be saved if the above procedure is followed.

Middi

 

[Zebra]

I'd love to say thanks, I'll try that, but the vertical joints are already pretty loose, and I'm having to chip the horizontal joints out a millimetre at a time, both above and below each brick. They certainly are not easily falling out when I tap the joint above with a bolster. The mortar is very tight and dense but kind of pliable and plasticky also, as if it had glue in it. It's not like any of the mortar I've found elsewhere in the house.
Anyway, progress has been made, hoping to turn the corner tomorrow!

 

[plasticpigeon]

On my house any brick which is held in place by the original lime mortar that I need to cut out I have done with an old wood saw. Its a bit of effort to begin with, working just on the front of the mortar joint, and I get stuck when I hit stones in the mortar, but once the saw is deeper in it is easier to cut. It seems the kindest way to me. Depending on how friable the mortar is it has taken me from around 2 to 15 minutes per brick! If your mortar isn't cement maybe you could try an old wood saw, its certainly long enough!!!!

 

[Flyfisher]

'Brick saws' are also available specifically for that purpose, with carbide teeth.

However, I'm not sure they'd be good for hard concrete/mortar.

 

[Zebra]

It hasn't been comfy........



but I've managed to turn the corner. There is something funny about the mortar in that corner though. It's like the consistency of old chewing gum, not brittle but hard. It also smells a bit like nail varnish remover or evo-stick, a very chemical smell. I think it's original mortar. It certainly isn't cement. Might it just be a really strong mix? Might the bricklayer have experimented and put some sort of glue in it? Or might it just be the fact that that mortar has spent most of its life underground and therefore is wet and has carbonated very slowly?

Tried wood saw, tried everything, managed to get them out but not without breakages. Next door have a pile of old soft reds from the cottages that were demolished to build their house so I've pinched a few of those.

 

[FamilyWiggs]

Well done. Keep it up. Every brick is a small victory!

 

[LadyArowana]

It certainly doesn't look comfy, but you will get it done and there will be a real sense of achievement. I suppose Henry was taking the picture which is why we can't see him.

 

[stuart45]

'Brick saws' are also available specifically for that purpose, with carbide teeth.

However, I'm not sure they'd be good for hard concrete/mortar.

I've got a Swedish masonry saw I bought about 30 years ago that will cut through hard cement mortar and most types of brick. However for cutting through brickwork to install a DPC a brick chainsaw taking some beating.

 

[philpjuk100]

quote

but I've managed to turn the corner. There is something funny about the mortar in that corner though. It's like the consistency of old chewing gum, not brittle but hard. It also smells a bit like nail varnish remover or evo-stick, a very chemical smell. I think it's original mortar. It certainly isn't cement. Might it just be a really strong mix? Might the bricklayer have experimented and put some sort of glue in it? Or might it just be the fact that that mortar has spent most of its life underground and therefore is wet and has carbonated very slowly?

Tried wood saw, tried everything, managed to get them out but not without breakages. Next door have a pile of old soft reds from the cottages that were demolished to build their house so I've pinched a few of those.[/quote]
could it have been injected with a chemical DPC?

 

[Flyfisher]

I wondered if a previous owner had tried some sort of slap-on chemical damp treatment, though didn't think of the injected variety. Wouldn't there be a line of tell-tale holes if injection has been used?

 

[Flyfisher]

It hasn't been comfy........

Yes, tenacity, that's the key.
You want to try doing it with hooves though...

What a teasing photo. I wanted to see those hooves at work. :wink:

 

[middi]

It is quite possible that hydraulic lime was used in the lower courses of the brickwork

 

[Zebra]

I suppose Henry was taking the picture which is why we can't see him.

Exactly!!

could it have been injected with a chemical DPC?

I really don't think so. It's had a cement render these 40 years, and there is no evidence of drill holes anywhere.

What a teasing photo. I wanted to see those hooves at work. :wink:

My hooves are very highly evolved, so with my ears under my hat and my tail tucked into my jeans, you'd never know!

Well I've managed to turn the corner, and the mortar seems to be getting softer. I reckon they put something in the mix for the corner, to make it hard. Don't know what. I am getting Henry to make a time machine, we shall both get in it, and go and tell the bricklayer who laid those bricks that we don't know what he put in the mix, but in 2012 (2012!!) a woman (a woman!!!) can't get the bricks out with an electric drill (a what?!). We don't know when to travel back to, we're going to head for 1700, see whether the house is here, and take it from there. Only problem is, I don't think they're familiar with either vacuum cleaners or zebras in 1700, so we might not make it back alive.

It is quite possible that hydraulic lime was used in the lower courses of the brickwork

Ah, would that be that hard? Well it's stood the test of time, whatever it is. Could be one reason the house is still here. Only problem is though, it's far harder than the bricks. I'm using NHL 3.5 to put the bricks back after I've put the dpc in so I hope that's the right thing.

 

[Zebra]

Well we went back in our time machine, managed to find the bricklayer who laid those bricks in the first place, asked him what was in the mix, he said "lime" and "sand". Nearly got into trouble then though, because Henry wanted to see if he could find his ancestors. He was going from house to house asking people if he could talk to their dustpans and brushes. They seemed to think he was from the devil, what with his red face, long nose, and frankly menacing little wheels, and were about to burn him at the stake when I managed to get the time machine going again......

 

[Flyfisher]

A hazardous business, time travel. :lol:

What you really need is one of those remote control rover thingies with a laser that can analyse rocks. NASA did have one but they've just set it free on Mars.

 

[plasticpigeon]

Ha, a friend of mine is developing such a device at the SRC. Raman spectroscopy. I don't think my mates instrument went to mars this time, and I'm not sue there will be a next time but it will be useful for something I'm sure, perhaps this is a new market.

 

[LadyArowana]

Well we went back in our time machine, managed to find the bricklayer who laid those bricks in the first place, asked him what was in the mix, he said "lime" and "sand". Nearly got into trouble then though, because Henry wanted to see if he could find his ancestors. He was going from house to house asking people if he could talk to their dustpans and brushes. They seemed to think he was from the devil, what with his red face, long nose, and frankly menacing little wheels, and were about to burn him at the stake when I managed to get the time machine going again......

That was a lucky escape, perhaps Henry could content himself with a little online research, this site http://vachunter.com/galleries.htm seems to have quite a few things that might be long lost ancestors. At least it will keep him away from some of those sleazy Hetty sites :roll:

 

[JoceAndChris]

:lol:

Wish I'd known you were time travelling Zebra, I still need 2 pairs of small matching bell pulls, and a dozen old brass nosings, I pr French Empire pedestal stands, an exploding cannon sundial, and a decent 18th C gardener. Must remember to get my requests in earlier next time.

I'm fairly sure at least the educated would have known about zebras in 1600 or 1700, though might have had a bit of a funny idea about them.

And if you'd whizzed by the latter half of the 19th, you might have seen Lord Rothschild with his pet ones!

http://www.retronaut.co/2010/07/the-brixton-zebra/lord-rothschilds-zebras/

Good luck with the horrid hard stuff.