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Had a super talk with a mason in Denver last month
He told me he always soaks brick before laying it in hot weather, says it stops the mortar from drying out too fast and cracking. Has anyone else seen that trick work on bigger jobs?
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lucas9721mo ago
...and that's the thing, I saw a crew out in Arizona last summer doing that with a whole wall of retaining blocks. They had a hose with a soaker nozzle and just hit every brick before they laid it. The mortar held up way better than the section they didn't soak, which had cracks showing by the end of the week. The mason I was talking to said it's about keeping the moisture in the joint steady so the cure is even. He also mentioned that if the brick is too wet it can cause a wicked white bloom on the face later, so there's a sweet spot.
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kellyj231mo ago
Yeah you gotta find that sweet spot for sure. I've had bricks that were too wet actually slide around and make a mess of the whole row. Better to mist them and wait a minute than dunk them in a bucket.
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