Spent half a day trying to get a brick arch form to release cleanly

Was building a small arch over a fireplace in a Reno remodel. Mortar kept grabbing the plywood form, even with oil. Took me 4 hours of careful prying and chiseling to get it out without damaging the bricks. Turns out I should've wrapped the form in plastic sheeting first, not just oil. Anyone got a better trick for this?

2 comments

2 Comments

webb.xena7d ago

Plastic's a waste, oil works fine if you apply it thick enough. You probably just rushed the curing time.

angela_wilson787d ago

Yeah, I've had that same fight with forms. What finally worked for me was a heavy coat of paste wax, the kind for wood floors. You let it haze up and buff it off, then the mortar just slides right off. Oil always seemed to soak in and stick anyway.