Ran into a retired mason at Home Depot who made me question my whole approach to repointing

I was grabbing some type N lime mix for a job downtown and this old timer starts chatting me up. He said I was using way too much water in my mix and that I should be aiming for a drier consistency that barely slumps. He showed me his method right there in the parking lot using a coffee can and a trowel. Now I'm wondering if half the joints I've done over the past 5 years are gonna crack earlier than they should. Anyone else ever get schooled by a random stranger on a simple thing like mix prep?

3 comments

3 Comments

logan_young297d ago

Wait was he actually a mason or just some old guy who knew a thing or two? I mean, not to knock the dude's advice but type N lime mix is already pretty forgiving with water content, you know? I always heard stiffer is better for vertical work cause it won't sag as much, but idk if that one parking lot demo is enough to throw away five years of experience. Maybe it's just me but I feel like you gotta take advice from strangers with a grain of salt, especially if it contradicts what's been working for you.

carr.lee7d ago

And that five years of his knowhow is worth more than some random's demo story any day.

the_xena6d ago

Must be nice having that kind of trust in some random internet stranger's 5 year story. I can barely trust my own memory of what I had for breakfast. Guess that's why I stick to following the bag instructions on mortar mix, keeps me out of trouble.