gray6•1mo ago

Hot take: should you butter your bricks or not?

I was on a job in Portland last summer, old brownstone repoint. Old timer next to me swears by buttering each brick before laying it. Says it stops voids. Foreman came over, said that's a waste of time and mud. Just slap it on. I've been doing it his way for 6 months now. But I still wonder if I'm leaving gaps. Anyone else go back and forth on this?

3 comments

3 Comments

wyatt521mo ago

Wonder if overthinking a brick gap really changes anything in the long run.

foster.charles1mo ago

Wait wait wait... you're telling me you've been laying brick for six months without buttering the face of each unit? That's wild to me. I've seen walls where guys just slopped the mud on the back and the next rainstorm washed half of it out of the joints. You end up with these little hollow spots that are a nightmare to fill later. The old timer in Portland was right, you're leaving voids 100%. Next time you're on a job, pull a brick off after it's set and look at the back, you'll see exactly how much mud actually stuck.

luna89127d ago

Well wouldn't pulling a test brick at the end of a shift tell you more than any old timer's opinion? I mean if you're really worried about voids, why not just spend five minutes pulling one random brick every hour and checking the back? That would settle the whole butter vs no butter debate real quick for your specific wall and mortar mix. Seems like a no brainer to me but maybe I'm missing something.