Lunch with an old foreman made me question my mortar mix ratios

Ran into a guy I worked with in Cleveland back in 2009, and he told me he's cut his Portland cement down to nearly half what the bag says because modern sand is finer in his area. Said he's done 40 plus walls that way with zero cracks in 15 years. Anyone else adjusted ratios off the label based on local sand?

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blair_dixon12d ago

That "zero cracks in 15 years" line hits home. I've been fighting with my own mix for the last couple years, and local sand here is getting finer every season it seems. I finally backed my Portland down maybe 15 percent from the label, and my last three pours came out way smoother, no spider webbing. It feels wrong at first, messing with what the bag says, but if the guy's got 40 walls standing, that's proof enough for me. Trust your ground, not just the print.