Yesterday, I decided to finally tackle that crumbling section of the garden wall. I’ve never mixed mortar before, so it was a bit of a learning experience. Here’s how it went down:
Gathering My Stuff
First, I made sure I had everything I needed. Safety first, right? So, I grabbed:
- Gloves– Gotta protect those hands.
- Dust mask– Breathing in cement dust is no fun.
- Safety glasses– Don’t want anything flying into my eyes.
- Wheelbarrow– For mixing the mortar. A bucket would work too, I guess.
- Shovel– For, well, shoveling.
- Trowel– This is the pointy tool for applying the mortar.
- Cement, sand, and lime– The key ingredients! I went with a pre-mixed bag to simplify things.
- Water– Obviously.
Mixing It Up
Okay, time to get dirty. I dumped the dry mix into the wheelbarrow. I am keeping the bag instructions,so I follow them.I started by adding a little bit of water at a time. The instructions said to aim for a “peanut butter” consistency, and that seemed about right.
I used the shovel to mix everything together. This was harder work than I expected! I kept adding water and mixing, adding water and mixing, until it looked smooth and there were no dry clumps. It took a good 10-15 minutes of solid mixing to get it there. I added too much water at one point, and the mortar came out too thin, so I balanced it with some more dry mix until it was thick.
Testing, Testing…
Before I started slapping it on the wall, I did a little test. I scooped up some mortar with the trowel and held it upside down. It stayed put! If it had slid off, it would have meant it was too * everything is ok,I’ll use it right away.
The Actual Bricklaying (Sort Of)
With the mortar ready, I started on the wall. I won’t go into the details of bricklaying here – that’s a whole other story! – but the mortar worked great. It was easy to spread and held the bricks in place nicely.
All in all, mixing mortar wasn’t as scary as I thought. Just follow the instructions, take your time, and don’t be afraid to get a little messy. And, seriously, wear the safety gear!
