r/stonemasonry

For those that remember I was building a garden wall, I was working with split faced concrete blocks. First ever attempt. The wall was originally knocked over by a van pretty much completely apart for the left pillar. Luckily all blocks were still intact apart from one coping stone which cracked in two.

So I chipped off the mortar from the now scattered loose blocks, then I dry fitted them the best I could(this is the hardest part)before mortaring to get an idea of the best layout. In hindsight I could have done this better, had a better mix of large and small and followed better course lines.

I then mortered them in which can be a tedious task, having to spend time on each line, fault, crack, opening, edge till it all looked compacted and compacted and smooth.

I leveled off each block and course each time as I was placing it.

The issue are smudging you can see some smudgung here and there, these could be carefully chipped off with a chisel but I didn't bother. The wall feels sturdy and secure and overall I'm quite pleased with it but I can see it could have been done better with more experience.

Fun to try.

Looking to take this column apart to relieve the bricks as it started to lean quite a bit over past few years. The top paver is not glued on. But rest of the bricks appear to be glued together. What is best way to do this without damaging the bricks so they can be reused?

Also what are the chances if I dig under the lowest corner and use a car jack to jack up that corner, then reinforce the foundation with another brick or limestone screening? if I remove the top slab, and just try to lift the corner of the column which is 8 layers of 4 bricks each which would be about 1000lbs total. Obviously I'm not lifting the weight of the entire column, but just one corner. Would this work?

Trying to make these movable without a machine, I have moved the one with some winches, but ideally I'd prefer to split them up and use them for the walkway or wall, how would a pro split them up? Can I just go at them with a jackhammer?

Flagstone won’t bread along guideline. Please help

I have never laid a stone before this project and it shows, but I think it's safe and looks cottage-y so kind of meets my spec.

I have been building this in my garden after work since June last year (11 months). It is full stone with lime mortar and every single thing is reclaimed or recycled.

Not a single bit of concrete or portland cement has been used (except the glass block window mortar) The full build has cost £500 ($700) all inI

Firstly I did have access to a small van so I collected as much free/cheap or stone as possible from facebook marketplace when people in my area were knocking down walls and stuff. This led to a mixture of lovely coursed stone batches and sometimes basically garden boulders which I would very roughly shape with a bolster chisel.

There was an existing concrete pad from an old garden structure so I was lucky in that regard but it was an odd shape, like a rhombus so I just sort of ran with it and dug a rubble trench foundation 5ft deep sloping away to daylight around the entire perimeter and then started the wall about 3ft underground in my biggest stone blocks.

I'm not sure if this is something I'll come to regret but I put the inner facing half of the wall on the concrete pad, and the outerfacing half on top of the giant stone block footing. They were then tied together with long through-stones and any tiny gap in the middle filled with lime mortar/smaller rubble).

I regret not using a string line or plumb line as it's maybe a little too "cottage-y" with not a single wall or opening anywhere close to straight. I later realised this isn't exactly doing yourself a favour when it comes to window and door frames!

Slowly slowly, I try to do a little amount every day as then it adds up. I still have to finish the door frames this weekend and the doors and guttering/downpipes. No rush now the roof is on and the couch is in.

Very fun build, I would love to do another with what I've learnt but would have to find more garden from somewhere!!

Please be super critical, I used hand tools only like it was 1850 for some reason, I don't quite trust myself with power tools ha

Flooring grade and level indoor/outdoor yet to be finalised so don't judge that part.

I will keep this post updated with future cracks and movement if any occur for the Googlers, I did a lot of googling whilst building and often took tips from the permaculture communities old posts so I know how helpful that can be.

TLDR: Full stone from Facebook marketplace quarry, NHL 3.5 hydraulic lime+sharp sand, clay soil, man cave, garden, hand tools only, no Portland.

Remodeled my bathroom and the workers left their footprints all over my pavers. What will remove this? I don’t even know what the stain could be?
Tried degreaser, high pressure, scrub brush, surface cleaner. Nothing has worked so far

Hey guys, I'm totally new to masonry. I want to make a raised bed in this area similar to the ai-generated 3rd image, but with natural stone gathered from around our property. I need some advice on:

- what kind of foundation (if any) do I need?

- does the foundation need to be leveled or can it go "uphill"?

- What kind of mortar should I use?

- How wide does the base need to be in order for the wall to stay stable?

- Can I do it with this kind of stone, or do I need something that is cut or broken into flatter shapes?

We live in Indiana (USA), so we do experience some freezing and thawing cycles in the winter.

Located in southwest PA. Recently started again on a large project that will be my residence when completed. This wall is fully below grade, home built 1917, much of the mortar is disintegrating when gently disturbed. Staircase has been removed due to water damage from 50+ years of sitting against it, and you can see the large hole thats formed.

I've done a fair number of masonry projects including repointing, building chimneys, etc - but my question comes to mortar replacement. Obviously modern mixes wont work, and I've been lead to believe that a Natural Hydraulic Lime mix is what I need for such soft stone, hardness 3.5. But I cannot find it anywhere outside of Lancaster Lime Works, and shipping is insane.

All measures are being taken to remediate any obvious water intrusion from outside alleyway (HD sika construction sealant).

Can I make my own mix with sourced components? Even with 5+ concrete/masonry distributors nearby, no one seemed to have any advice or product.

So we got our tile line and coping replaced. Tiles look great but this marble stone coping looks a mess to me.

The day after it was installed, I saw some giant rust colored stains all over it already. I assumed maybe some machinery has dripped rusty water or something. So I called them and they said they would come clean and seal it.

Today they came and it appears they pressure washed it. The original stains are gone but there’s all this dark blotching and pressure wash lines all over it. It looks completely jacked up to me. Is this permanent? I’m ready to call and let them have it but not sure if I should wait and see if it improves.

Video is a bit flashy. But I will make a step by step video very soon.

Panels of this material were removed from a central Ohio commercial structure built in the 1960’s. It has texture, weight and fractures like sandstone and has flakes of quartz. Boss believes it’s grout.

Building a small stone masonry cottage for my grandma. I have been fascinated about stone houses. Any thoughts?

Hi all. I am renovating my small property with a house lift that will add a semi below ground patio space with drainage. The slab is poured concrete and myself and some co workers will do the CMU walls reinforced with rebar and grout for the new foundation walls.

As a stone mason I wanted to build the retaining walls for the patio out of stone but I am running into trouble with engineers and planners. They want an engineered retaining wall either of poured concrete or pre engineered concrete retaining wall blocks.

I seem to lack the terminology or knowledge to guide them towards my idea or I could be incorrect in thinking this is viable. In my mind I've seen crazier builds out of stone. The damn building I'm working on restoring is massive granite and sandstone blocks. I know it can be done I just don't know how to convince these people how to do it.

If I end up having to do poured concrete how can I make it look nice? Stick on stone? I hate the idea but its better than plain concrete.

I don't understand how engineered concrete is viewed as better or stronger than a granite block but hey, I'm just an aspiring stone mason.

Any advice is welcome. Steer me in the right direction if Im wrong.

Thank you for all your advice and thoughts. Photos uploaded here. Can't have cats due to kiddo having severe allergy.

We live in a New England 1852 house with a fieldstone foundation and are trying to solve recurring rodent entry issues. Pest control companies have not solved the issue and have recommended we contract with a mason since the lattice over our deck is currently removed. We’ve now gotten four very different professional opinions, and we’re hoping for advice from people familiar with old homes with mice entering through basement.

One mason who inspected the house felt the interior in the basement walls were actually in pretty good condition overall and noted they had at one point had interior insulation (before we owned the house).

Below is a summary of the estimates we’ve received:

Estimate #1 (Foundation company – PolyLEVEL system)

• Remove failing/flaking Drylok-type coating from portions of interior foundation walls
• Spray ~1.5" PolyLEVEL foam insulation over interior wall surfaces
• Cover foam with intumescent thermal barrier coating
• Claimed to reduce moisture somewhat, but not waterproofing
• Requires 24 hours no occupancy during install
• Cost: ~$7,500

Concern: whether spraying foam directly onto old fieldstone is appropriate long-term, especially regarding moisture, trapped water, and future maintenance of stone/mortar and that another mason said the interior former spray looked to be in good shape.

Estimate #2 (Exterior rodent-prevention foundation work)

• Excavate 2–3 ft of dirt in the areas discussed
• Remove corroded pointing in fieldstone foundation
• Install new Type-S mortar pointing
• Apply a coat of stucco
• Install 12” x 3’ sharp edge gravel barrier
• Cellar window repair (replace wood with cinder block)
• 7-year transferable warranty
• Cost: $11,750
• Noted as being specifically for rodent prevention

Estimate #3 (Masonry repointing-focused assessment)
Recommended repointing a good portion of the foundation along one side of the house, specifically:

• Small section in front of the porch
• Section under the porch
• Back corner of the house
• One additional section along the side
• Only ground level- not digging down 2-3 ft nor putting in 12” x 3’ sharp edge gravel barrier
• Cost: $1,500

Company #4 (Declined)
After inspecting the property, they declined the job and stated:
“Based on the existing site conditions and the nature of the rodent intrusion concerns tied to the fieldstone foundation, we do not feel we could confidently offer a solution that aligns with the long-term performance standards and warranty expectations our company requires for this type of work.”

We’re trying to understand:

• What actually works best long-term for rodent exclusion in very old fieldstone foundations

Any thoughts from a mason or pest control perspective on fieldstone foundations would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!!

What is this style of wall called? This wall surrounds the famous Casa Loma in Toronto built in 1914. These garden walls have always fascinated me with their clean looks. I have a hard time believing builders today could duplicate this style and make it last 100+ years. Am I wrong?

The contractor we hired to do our concrete driveway ran out of enough concrete so he decided to go to Home Depot to get quickrete instead of buying another truck. now after about a year the top layer is peeling off what would be the best way in your opinion to fix this

I am a DIY'er that likes to do things the right way. I have never installed stone before and I have made my job even harder by installing stone ledger vertically. I definitely will appreciate someone that has experience in the field to let me know if this corner seems acceptable. I am using a ryobi tile saw that sucks at doing 45 degrees on this specific stone, but still gets me close enough where I can use an angle grinder to shave more from the tile. ​I tried using just the angle grinder by itself but it breaks the tile. Maybe im doing it wrong. Does this corner look ok or should I not continue doing it this way? Thanks for you help in advance!