Am I the only one who sees guys not soaking their bricks enough on hot days?

I was working on a patio job in Phoenix last July, and the crew on the house next door was laying brick in 105-degree heat with barely a splash of water. You could hear the mortar hiss as it went down. In my experience, if you don't get those bricks properly wet, especially the really dry ones, they suck the moisture right out of the mix before it can cure. It leads to a weak bond and you'll see cracks in a few months, no question. I always dunk mine in a tub for a good minute until the bubbles stop. It adds maybe ten minutes to the setup, but it saves a callback. Has anyone else had to fix a wall that failed because the bricks were laid too dry?

2 comments

2 Comments

leo_harris3d ago

My old foreman in Tucson swore by a full five-minute soak.

gray_nguyen23d ago

Oh man, that makes total sense for that dry heat. I mean, it's not just about getting wet, it's about letting the material actually drink it in. Like with drywall mud out there, if you just splash it, it skins over and cracks. You gotta let it sit so it soaks deep, same with concrete before you pour. That extra time changes everything.