Brickwork Projects for Patio & Garden. Alan Bridgewater
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Название: Brickwork Projects for Patio & Garden
Автор: Alan Bridgewater
Издательство: Ingram
Жанр: Дом и Семья: прочее
isbn: 9781607659402
isbn:
Mixing by hand
Mixing concrete or mortar by hand is hard work. Find a sheet of exterior plywood for mixing on, about 4′ (1.22m) square and ½″–1″ (13–25mm) thick, a shovel and a bucket for the water (see here). If more than 55 lbs. (25kg) of cement or mortar is required, you should seriously consider using a cement mixer.
Using a cement mixer
A cement mixer is used for making concrete and mortar, and is a wonderful timesaver that actually does a better job than you can do by hand. Cement mixers can be bought or rented, and are available in different capacities, powered by an electric or gas engine. The small, electric versions are most suitable for DIY projects and mix up to approximately twelve shovelfuls of cement, sand or ballast, producing one wheelbarrow load of concrete or mortar. Follow the instructions supplied with the machine. Remember that at the end of a job, an empty cement mixer can only be left for about five minutes before it needs to be washed out, otherwise the remnants of cement will set solid. Use a hose and a brush to do this.
TOOLS FOR HANDLING MORTAR
Bricklayer’s trowel
Spreading mortar
The bricklayer’s trowel (the larger of the two similarly shaped trowels) is the one used most frequently in bricklaying. It is used to scoop up mortar and spread it smoothly, to an even thickness, over the top and ends of the bricks, and also for slicing off excess mortar that has squeezed out from between the bricks. It can also be employed to knock the bricks level (using the blade or the handle) or to chop bricks roughly in half.
Pointing trowel
Finishing joints
After the bricks have been laid and before the mortar is dry, the joints between the bricks need to be cleaned up with a pointing trowel or by another method (see here). The pointing trowel is used to fill any gaps in the joints, and also to repoint (see here). Be careful not to smear the excess mortar on the face of the brickwork. The pointing trowel may be used in place of the bricklayer’s trowel if you find that too heavy and awkward.
TOOLS FOR CUTTING BRICK, STONE AND CONCRETE
CAUTION
Angle grinders and other hand-held disc cutters are dangerous machines and should only be operated while wearing protective gear (see here). Follow the manufacturer’s advice, and if you have never operated one before, it’s advisable to ask an expert or the tool rental store to show you how to use it safely.
Cutting bricks
To cut just a few bricks, for the projects in this book, we recommend using hand tools for the sake of simplicity. The most common method is to simply chop the bricks with a brick chisel and club hammer (see here).
Various machines are available for cutting brick and masonry (see here). You can use an angle grinder, brick guillotine (good for quick 90° cuts, but the results aren’t as good as with a masonry saw), circular saw fitted with an abrasive masonry blade, or a disc cutter fitted with a stonecutting disc. If your design requires hundreds of bricks to be cut, consider renting a masonry saw with a diamond blade (which will also cope with angled cuts).
Cutting blocks, slabs, stone and tiles
Concrete block pavers can be cut in the same way as bricks, as described above. Concrete slab pavers, flat pieces of stone and thick concrete or clay tiles can all be cut with a heavyweight disc cutter or masonry saw (depending on size). However, for safety reasons we recommend using a small angle grinder fitted with a stone-cutting disc to score a cut, and then finishing the cut with a brick chisel and club hammer (see here). Most thin tiles can be cut with a basic hand-operated tile-cutting machine.
Wear gloves and goggles when cutting by hand; if using a machine, wear gloves, goggles, a dust mask, earmuffs and sturdy boots.
Club hammer
Bricklayer’s hammer
Angle grinder
Brick chisel
ADDITIONAL TOOLS
Claw hammer
Rubber mallet
General-purpose saw
Power drill
Jigsaw
Twist drill bit
Scissors СКАЧАТЬ