Mortar is a cement mixture used to bond bricks, concrete blocks and stones together. Unlike concrete, which weakens if overworked by excessive mixing or smoothing, mortar can be spread and troweled ...

Q. I need to repair the mortar joints on my older brick home that was built in the late 1800s. I’ve seen some horrible workmanship where the mortar doesn’t match at all, and I want to avoid this. How ...

INDIANAPOLIS – Do you know what “repointing” bricks means? By definition, it consists of “removing a portion of the deteriorated mortar and redoing the joints with new mortar.” Doing that basically ...

Lime-based mortars are flexible and pervious, allowing for shifts in older foundations and structures and facilitating the movement of moisture in and out walls. This malleability is paramount to ...

Q: It appears I wasted some money five years ago. I had my brick building repointed with new mortar, and it has deteriorated quickly. Do you have any idea what caused that? The building is close to ...

Q: Mortar is falling out of the inside of the granite foundation in my 137-year-old house, and wind and rain are coming through. What can I do to stop it? A: When mortar comes out, put new in. It's ...

"Cordwood Building" collects the wisdom of more than 25 of the world's best practitioners, detailing the long history of the method, and demonstrating how to build a cordwood home using the latest and ...