The cold joint I thought I fixed came back to bite me

Layed a long garden wall last Tuesday and hit a cold joint where I stopped for lunch. I thought wetting the old brick faces before continuing was enough, but the next day I saw a hairline crack right there. Learned that a proper rake-out and a slurry coat on the existing mortar is the only way to go, even if it adds 20 minutes. Anyone else had a repaired cold joint fail on them, or do you always cut a fresh key?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_claire3d ago

Honestly, is a hairline crack in a garden wall really gonna bring the whole thing down? Unless it’s load-bearing or you’re staring at it every day, that’s a pretty minor fix.

gracethomas3d ago

Wait, did you just call a hairline crack in a garden wall minor? That's like saying a small leak in your roof is fine because only a little water gets in. Water gets into that crack, freezes in the winter, expands, and next thing you know you've got a chunk of the wall sitting on the ground. I've seen what looks like a tiny line turn into a full blown repair job in one season. And if that wall is holding up anything, even just a heavy vine or a gate, it's doing way more work than you think. You might not stare at it every day, but you'll sure as hell stare at it when the whole thing tips over on your tomato plants.