Articles
The Bricky Tool - Review
I tried out the 
, a nifty little tool to help lay even mortar beds, and wrote my review.
If you are of a similar age to me you will have grown up with K-tel and Ronco products you may be, like me, sceptical about such products and wonder if The Bricky Tool is just another of these - a kind of Brick-O-Matic that by rights should also offer to de-fluff your cardigan and remove scratces from your LP's.
So let's start off being clear about what The Bricky claims. The Bricky tool is to assist in one aspect of bricklaying - laying even and constant beds of mortar. All other aspects of the job remain your responsibility. If The Bricky is going to be a useful aid to your brick laying you must still feel confident about and take responsibility for:
- Setting Out – You must be sure that you have set out your proposed building or BBQ accurately. The Bricky can’t help here.
- Laying your first course. This still needs to be done freehand, and importantly, you must be able to lay this first course plumb, square and level.
- Mixing mortar to a good consistency. Many inexperienced brick layers mix mortar that is too dry or to sloppy. Get this wrong and you are still in a mess even with TheBricky.
- Staying plumb, level and to gauge. - I suggest you still use string lines and check for plumb and level, don’t just assume it has to be right because you used the tool. Gauge should be pretty well catered for because you will be laying an even bed, but once more, take responsibility and constantly check.
Also note that if you are not planning to work with modern 102.5mm bricks, it’s not going to be of any use. (though, of course, you could still use it for your inner blockwork).
My Experience so far
Once I got going, I began to use the tool for my thermalite blockwork. As promised, the tool did allow me to lay an even bed of mortar and prevent excess mortar from spewing out the sides when I tap the block to level. It’s hard to argue that easily laying an even mortar bed is a bad thing. After all, what a pro builder isn’t aiming to lay mortar evenly and consistently?
Probably because I am not the speediest layer of blocks, I soon realised that it was not agreat idea to lay a long bed of mortar all in one go. Thermalites, even if wetted down, suck the moisture up pretty quick, and I found the mortar drying out too much. I soon decided that I could lay just a couple of blocks worth of mortar (half or three quarters of the length of thetool), slide the Bricky along, lay my blocks and then lay further mortar. I suggest you just lay the mortar bed at a rate to suit your working speed and you should be fine (I got faster as Iprogressed so began to lay longer mortar beds)
Buttering up your perps with the right amount of mortar can be tricky for the inexperienced. It's very common among builders, though not recommended by NHBC, to just butter the two edges of a block or brick. I found the Bricky useful for ensuring full and even perps. Once again, it does as intended and lays an even mortar bed. You can easily press the mortar firmly to prevent it all slipping straight off a soon as you offer the block up. I preferred to butter up the block before laying it; trying to butter up the previously laid block meant I was always disturbing my string line.
I chose to build using Full fill cavity batts. As these need to be in place as I build, there is no room for the Bricky tool when I start to raise my second skin (the brickwork in my case). So, with this limitation, I am laying my brickwork freehand, but still using the Bricky to help me with the perps. Had I have used partial fill Kingspan type insulation this would not have been a problem. That said, my bricks, though new and of the correct size, are quite rustic and, therefore, uneven, curved and with the odd lump and bump. The Bricky certainly works best with lovely even and square bricks.
My Conclusion (so far)
I would say that The Bricky successfully achieves its objectives. I am not sure how useful it would be for an experienced brick layer because its only real objective is to lay an even mortar bed, something an experienced brick layer may feel he/she manages quite successfully without constantly reaching for yet another tool, and, of course, having yet another item to clean at the end of the day. But if you are handy, but lack experience, I really think this tool will help.
I do love the Propointing tool that comes as part of the kit. It was easy to use and versatile. You can also buy them separately.
So long as you appreciate what this tool can and can’t do for you, you should get on fine with it. If you go wrong despite using this tool it will probably be for one of the reasons listed at the top of the article – and you can’t blame that on The Bricky.
At around £30 it is very reasonably priced, so if you have a brick laying job to do and you are not totally confident, it is certainly worth a try - it really could help you. And if you really don't get on with it you will still have a new trowel and string line holders that come as part of the kit.
I will update this article with my thoughts after further building work.
The Bricky Tool - Review
I tried out the , a nifty little tool to help lay even mortar beds, and wrote my review.
If you are of a similar age to me you will have grown up with K-tel and Ronco products you may be, like me, sceptical about such products and wonder if The Bricky Tool is just another of these - a kind of Brick-O-Matic that by rights should also offer to de-fluff your cardigan and remove scratces from your LP's.
So let's start off being clear about what The Bricky claims. The Bricky tool is to assist in one aspect of bricklaying - laying even and constant beds of mortar. All other aspects of the job remain your responsibility. If The Bricky is going to be a useful aid to your brick laying you must still feel confident about and take responsibility for:
- Setting Out – You must be sure that you have set out your proposed building or BBQ accurately. The Bricky can’t help here.
- Laying your first course. This still needs to be done freehand, and importantly, you must be able to lay this first course plumb, square and level.
- Mixing mortar to a good consistency. Many inexperienced brick layers mix mortar that is too dry or to sloppy. Get this wrong and you are still in a mess even with TheBricky.
- Staying plumb, level and to gauge. - I suggest you still use string lines and check for plumb and level, don’t just assume it has to be right because you used the tool. Gauge should be pretty well catered for because you will be laying an even bed, but once more, take responsibility and constantly check.
Also note that if you are not planning to work with modern 102.5mm bricks, it’s not going to be of any use. (though, of course, you could still use it for your inner blockwork).
My Experience so far
Once I got going, I began to use the tool for my thermalite blockwork. As promised, the tool did allow me to lay an even bed of mortar and prevent excess mortar from spewing out the sides when I tap the block to level. It’s hard to argue that easily laying an even mortar bed is a bad thing. After all, what a pro builder isn’t aiming to lay mortar evenly and consistently?
Probably because I am not the speediest layer of blocks, I soon realised that it was not agreat idea to lay a long bed of mortar all in one go. Thermalites, even if wetted down, suck the moisture up pretty quick, and I found the mortar drying out too much. I soon decided that I could lay just a couple of blocks worth of mortar (half or three quarters of the length of thetool), slide the Bricky along, lay my blocks and then lay further mortar. I suggest you just lay the mortar bed at a rate to suit your working speed and you should be fine (I got faster as Iprogressed so began to lay longer mortar beds)
Buttering up your perps with the right amount of mortar can be tricky for the inexperienced. It's very common among builders, though not recommended by NHBC, to just butter the two edges of a block or brick. I found the Bricky useful for ensuring full and even perps. Once again, it does as intended and lays an even mortar bed. You can easily press the mortar firmly to prevent it all slipping straight off a soon as you offer the block up. I preferred to butter up the block before laying it; trying to butter up the previously laid block meant I was always disturbing my string line.
I chose to build using Full fill cavity batts. As these need to be in place as I build, there is no room for the Bricky tool when I start to raise my second skin (the brickwork in my case). So, with this limitation, I am laying my brickwork freehand, but still using the Bricky to help me with the perps. Had I have used partial fill Kingspan type insulation this would not have been a problem. That said, my bricks, though new and of the correct size, are quite rustic and, therefore, uneven, curved and with the odd lump and bump. The Bricky certainly works best with lovely even and square bricks.
My Conclusion (so far)
I would say that The Bricky successfully achieves its objectives. I am not sure how useful it would be for an experienced brick layer because its only real objective is to lay an even mortar bed, something an experienced brick layer may feel he/she manages quite successfully without constantly reaching for yet another tool, and, of course, having yet another item to clean at the end of the day. But if you are handy, but lack experience, I really think this tool will help.
I do love the Propointing tool that comes as part of the kit. It was easy to use and versatile. You can also buy them separately.
So long as you appreciate what this tool can and can’t do for you, you should get on fine with it. If you go wrong despite using this tool it will probably be for one of the reasons listed at the top of the article – and you can’t blame that on The Bricky.
At around £30 it is very reasonably priced, so if you have a brick laying job to do and you are not totally confident, it is certainly worth a try - it really could help you. And if you really don't get on with it you will still have a new trowel and string line holders that come as part of the kit.
I will update this article with my thoughts after further building work.