Almost lost a whole wall in Portland when my mortar mix was too wet

Was working on a retaining wall for a client off Burnside last Tuesday. I was rushing between loads and didn't check the slump, next thing I know the whole top course started sliding on me. Had to tear out 12 feet and redo it, wasted about 40 bucks in materials. Anyone else had a bad batch of mix screw up their day?

2 comments

2 Comments

sethb455d ago

Call me crazy but $40 in materials sounds like a cheap lesson honestly. Portland weather is so finicky with moisture anyway, I've had mortar act up just because the humidity was high that day. If a whole wall was sliding on you that fast, maybe the base or drainage wasn't right to begin with. Tearing out 12 feet sounds like a pain but it beats having the whole thing fall over next winter. I've seen guys try to save a bad batch with extra dry mix and it always ends up looking like patchwork. Just chalk it up to the cost of doing business and move on.

riley8605d ago

Wait, so what's the right base setup for Portland's wet ground then?