Missing Bricklayer

[Ed_MK]

Hi All

 

I thought I had all my trades "lined up" for the next 3 months ...but for some reason the Bricklayer

(really nice guy too) has gone AWOL ..No returning calls and no answered emails ....so its been like 
2 weeks of trying so .....

 

 

does anyone know a good brickie ...(pref with experience working on timber frame) in the Bucks, MK area

 

thanks In advance

 

Ed

[Tennentslager]

Is @Brickie around London...?

[Ed_MK]

We may be a bit far north for the London boys.

also i heard they was on MEGA bucks inside the M25

<kerching>

[PeterW]

What is the build ..? Just a brick skin over a TF..? @Barney12 had my brickie - he will travel but will probably need accommodation locally otherwise it will be time consuming. 

 

Drop me a PM with plans etc

[Ed_MK]

thanks Peter, yes basically a ground floor skin
...but a decent chimney as well (and internal fireplace component (2.7m wide)

 

i think the last brickie said 6500 bricks all told

 

 

[nod]

8 minutes ago, Ed_MK said:

We may be a bit far north for the London boys.

also i heard they was on MEGA bucks inside the M25

<kerching>

£250 per day round here 

and we are much further north

[PeterW]

Ok he did a full chimney for me in reclaim with a nice corbel detail (I got the dimensions wrong at ground level.....) and finished with a reclaimed pot. It was done with Dunbrik liners too so no S/S liner to worry about. 

 

Are you using readymix mortar..??

[Ed_MK]

Well i wasnt planning to

is that what happens these days ?

 

No piles of sand and ripped bags of cement and empty bottles of fairly liquid?

where have the 70's and 80's gone ???

 

[Declan52]

18 minutes ago, Ed_MK said:

Well i wasnt planning to

is that what happens these days ?

 

No piles of sand and ripped bags of cement and empty bottles of fairly liquid?

where have the 70's and 80's gone ???

 

As you going for facing bricks is something you should really consider. All the beds and perps will be the same colour and it will look much much better. You have near on no waste at all compared to using a mixer. Plus you don't need to put aside a fairly large area that you need for a load of sand, cement and a mixer. 

[PeterW]

Ready mix is quick, simple and quiet although a 1/3cuM tub weighs a fair bit so you either need a flat level drive and a pallet truck or a Telehandler if you’ve got a way to go and tight access. 

 

But as @Declan52 says - you get a perfect finish with no variation. 

[Vijay]

so does the ready mix mortar come mixed dry and then you add water or does it come ready to use?

[PeterW]

Just now, Vijay said:

so does the ready mix mortar come mixed dry and then you add water or does it come ready to use?

 

Comes pre-mixed with a retarder in it - will last 72 hours or thereabouts if you keep the air off it. Lovely stuff to work with and no mixer running for 8 hours a day !! 

[SteamyTea]

13 minutes ago, PeterW said:

with a retarder in it

So comes with the brick layer in the tub then, cool

[Nickfromwales]

First time I've even heard of compo being pre-mixed and sent to site! How much easier ( and consistent ) is that   Let your fingers do the walking. 

[PeterW]

1 hour ago, Nickfromwales said:

First time I've even heard of compo being pre-mixed and sent to site! How much easier ( and consistent ) is that   Let your fingers do the walking. 

 

You rent the tubs and then they line with a poly bag every delivery - our supplier will do down to one tub an order but they usually like at least two - does about 400 bricks per tub. 

 

[Nickfromwales]

2 minutes ago, PeterW said:

 

You rent the tubs and then they line with a poly bag every delivery - our supplier will do down to one tub an order but they usually like at least two - does about 400 bricks per tub. 

 

Cool 

And Jesus, you've done a fair bit to that place since that shot !

[PeterW]

2 minutes ago, Nickfromwales said:

Cool 

And Jesus, you've done a fair bit to that place since that shot !

 

Yep - told you there was a double garage in there somewhere ..!! 

 

I reckon I get 10-15% more brick/block laid per day with readymix on a 1:1 gang as the labourer is only loading out - no mixing, no Monday morning pigeon poo and you can normally run it over a weekend if it’s wrapped up tight. In 21 tubs in all dumped around a tub in total over 9 weeks - less than 5% wastage. 

[ToughButterCup]

4 hours ago, PeterW said:

 

Comes pre-mixed with a retarder in it - will last 72 hours or thereabouts if you keep the air off it.[...]

 

Amazon Prime Drone Delivery soon too............   

[Barney12]

11 hours ago, PeterW said:

What is the build ..? Just a brick skin over a TF..? @Barney12 had my brickie - he will travel but will probably need accommodation locally otherwise it will be time consuming. 

 

Drop me a PM with plans etc

 

Yep, good he is too. In fact I must message him as I need to start thinking about the 120+ linear meters of retaining walls in the garden landscaping plan  

[Ed_MK]

That new premix mortar.

How does it compare pricewise to "ye olde method"

 

 

...oh and does anyone know a way of avoiding that AWFUL white glaze "salt" you get on a lot of new
brick jobs? ...I was told one that it is because the bricks are too "new" ....but how can this be avoided 

 

Edited May 7, 2018 by Ed_MK

[Declan52]

The white stuff is the salts that are in the bricks that leech out when they get wet. You need to keep them covered up from they arrive on site till they are built. The stacks that the Labourer sets out need covered with plywood/polythene and then when they get built each night a roll of 150mm/225mm dpc gets rolled out over the top and other bricks set on top to stop it blowing away.

[Ian]

@Ed_MK

you can use a brick with a low salt content and don’t use Fairy Liquid as a plasticiser in the mortar as it’s loaded with salt

[Brickie]

Sorry for my late participation in this thread-was cruising South London basking in the envious glances at my 07 plate Transit Crew Cab whilst pre 1982 Simple Minds pumped out of the speakers. 

 

Okay,too far for me. My nephew is in Leighton B’stard & I have old friends in St Ives & St Neots who may be able to help-pm me if you want & Ill give you some numbers. 

 

Readymix-I’m not a fan. 

The colour issue can be solved by gauging your materials into the mixer with a bucket (6 buckets of sand to 1 cement or whatever your spec is.) Colour will always be the same no matter how many labourers you sack :))

Also-with Ready spread if the weather is worse than predicted you can end up with a load of unusable rock hard gear in the skip that you’ve paid for. 

[Nickfromwales]

43 minutes ago, Brickie said:

Sorry for my late participation in this thread-was cruising South London basking in the envious glances at my 07 plate Transit Crew Cab whilst pre 1982 Simple Minds pumped out of the speakers. 

Your as rich as me then lol.

[Onoff]

Talking to a Gurkha friend. His house in Nepal was destroyed in the earthquake so he's rebuilding. A 1000sq foot building and a 500sq foot one as regs there wouldn't allow 1500sq foot as one building.

 

Single storey buildings. Involves lots of rebar now and subject to official inspections.

 

Total cost £25K

 

A good brickie in the village is about £7 or 8 a day but you'll pay double that in town!