Shoutout to the mortar that set before I could fix my mistake

I was laying a garden wall in Portland last Tuesday and my trowel slipped, knocking three bricks out of alignment on a fresh course, and by the time I ran back from grabbing my lump hammer, that quicklime mix had already firmed up like concrete. Had to chip it all out and redo that whole section, which set me back an hour - has anyone else had a batch set faster than expected?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_diana18d ago

Quicklime mix had already firmed up like concrete" - holy crap, that's brutal. I can't imagine running back for a hammer only to find everything already locked in place. You must have been fuming.

hannahsingh18d ago

Wait wait wait... it set up that quick? Like in the time it took to grab a hammer and run back? That's insane, I thought quicklime took at least a little while to harden up. That must have been one hell of a mess to deal with.

jamie77018d ago

You ever try breaking it up with a sledgehammer, or did you just have to start over completely?