Correctly preparing the mortar for bricklaying the stove is one of the most important conditions for the truly successful construction of this structure. Many people quite often do not pay due attention to this moment, as a result of which their oven does not last long, and sometimes it cannot function at all. That is why in this article we will examine in detail how the mortar for bricklaying a brick is made correctly, and what needs to be taken into account in order for the stove to be really reliable and durable.
What will it be?
In the process of laying the kilns , approximately three buckets of mortar are required for every hundred bricks. In the predominant majority of cases, the brick masonry mortar has a homogeneous composition, and at the same time it must withstand temperatures of more than 1000 ° C without being deformed. By professional specialists who have been working in this field for a long time, the quality of clay for the prepared solution is easily determined by touch, and the masonry is carried out with a joint thickness of about 4 mm. If thicker joints are made, the brick mortar for masonry will not be able to withstand high temperatures and will crumble, which will lead to the formation of cracks that impair traction and increase fuel consumption. Among other things, one can not help saying that such problems ultimately lead to the danger of carbon monoxide coming into the living room, which can provoke extremely unpleasant consequences.
What to consider?
One of the most important rules of the stove-maker is the following: the less clay is used in the masonry process, the higher its quality. It should be noted that clay itself is a noble building material, since even those people who do not do such things professionally and in principle do not have any relevant skills can work with it. In the event that the masonry is carried out on a mortar of cement, then in this case it will not be possible to disassemble it without serious losses, since it is still not difficult for an unprofessional person to prepare a mortar for masonry brick , but it is much more difficult to build everything correctly. Clay mortar, if necessary, allows you to easily disassemble the furnace without any waste. In the process of repair work, both brick and other building material, for the laying of which clay mortar is used, is always preserved.
Do I need supplements?
There is an opinion that it is possible to increase the strength of the solution used if you use specialized additives, but in fact you should not forget that literally 100 years ago no such additives were used, but at the same time the stoves, which were based on the clay solution, served faithfully people for a hundred or more years, since preparing a mortar for laying brick from clay is far from such a difficult task, even if you need to do everything as correctly and efficiently as possible. In the event that you were able to properly prepare all the components, you will not need any additives to make the clay solution, and various recommendations in this case are a simple safety net.
What should it be like?
To build really reliable brick ovens, you need to use an extremely plastic, but at the same time moderately "greasy" solution. In that case, if you seriously overdo it with the "fat content" of this solution, after the final drying, it will decrease sufficiently in volume or may crack at all. At the same time, a “lean” solution will not allow achieving the required strength, as a result of which the structure itself will be unreliable.
Clays for the manufacture of this solution differ in plasticity and fat content, while it is worth noting that there are clay deposits from which a solution of normal fat content is made even in the complete absence of sand. Often you have to mix at the same time two or even three types of clay, which are taken from different places, but in this case a fairly strict dosage is observed.
How is mixing done?
Initially, the mixing of the mortar for the brickwork of the brick is carried out in a dry form, but then the resulting mixture is closed with water. In the event that the clay is more oily than planned, sand is additionally added to the solution in an amount of from half to five parts, depending on the volume. The most common ratio of sand and clay in an already prepared solution is a ratio of 1: 1 or 2: 1. About a quarter of the total clay volume is added to the water.
You should remember that for the processing of oily clay you need to use a larger amount of sand, moreover, it should be fine-grained, in the complete absence of any impurities. Initially, sand is sifted carefully through a frequent sieve, and all excess sand must be removed from very lean clay.
How to check the quality?
There are a fairly large number of ways to check the quality of clay. As mentioned above, in the vast majority of cases, professional specialists are able to determine the quality simply by touching the clay mortar for masonry after cooking.
For people who do not specialize in this field, the easiest way is to sculpt the ball from the prepared solution and throw it on the floor. If the ball has completely crumbled, this indicates that too much sand is present in the prepared solution, which is also indicated by the formation of a large number of cracks. At normal or excessive fat content of the resulting solution, no cracks should remain in the ball.
There are also three other ways to determine the quality of the masonry mortar.
First
Approximately 0.5 l of clay is taken, after which a small amount of water is added to it and thoroughly kneading with your hands until all the water has completely entered into it, and it will not stick to your hands. After making a cool dough, a ball rolls in diameter from 40 to 50 mm, and the same ball is then used to make a cake with a diameter of 100 mm. Under normal conditions, this product is dried for two to three days.
Further, if any cracks formed on the cake during this period of time, this indicates that the clay is too oily, and sand will need to be added to it. Again, if the cracks are completely absent, and even after falling from a height of one meter, the ball does not crumble, the clay is suitable to make a really high-quality solution of clay and sand.
Skinny clay will also not crack, but you must understand that it is fragile, as a result of which you will need to add a sufficiently large amount of oily clay to it, and as a result, a large flow rate of the solution by 1 m3 masonry. Clay itself or sand is added in several passes, after each of which a repeated check of the quality of the prepared solution is carried out.
Second
Clay is placed in some dishes and filled with water, after which the resulting consistency is kneaded into lumps and mixed with funka. In the event that the clay adheres sufficiently to the funnel or even completely envelops it, then this indicates excessive fat content of the resulting solution, as a result of which a certain amount of sand will need to be added to it. If, after mixing, only single clots remain on the jail, then the clay is normal, and a masonry mortar for masonry can be prepared from it even in the complete absence of sand. Too thin a layer is determined by skinny clay, and in this case, in order to ensure normal characteristics and mortar consumption for the masonry, you will need to add a certain amount of oily clay to it.
Third
This method is the most accurate and allows you to determine the optimal quality of clay necessary for the manufacture of bricks. Approximately 0.5 l of clay is kneaded to a state of thickness of a steep dough, after which it is thoroughly kneading with your hands in the same way as in the first method. Then a ball is rolled from this test, which is placed between two planed boards, and the upper one is gently pressed, gradually compressing the resulting ball. Compression is repeated until cracks appear on the ball. The degree of fat content in this case is determined depending on how much the ball is flattened, and also what character the formed cracks will have.
If the ball was made of sufficiently skinny clay, then in this case, even when you first press it, it will completely disintegrate into pieces. A ball of thicker clay will crack approximately when compressed by a quarter or fifth. If the ball is compressed by a third of the diameter, and only then gives a crack, this suggests that the clay is normal and does not require any additives. Greasy clay can flatten to half of its original thickness.
Alternative option
From the same test as the ball, flagella with the thickness of 10-15 mm and length up to 200 mm can be rolled out by hand. Flagella bend in the form of a ring around the rolling pin or stretch.
In the event that the flagellum extends smoothly, the clay is oily, and sand will need to be added to the composition of the masonry solution. When using normal clay, the flagellum will also stretch smoothly and break only when its thickness directly at the point of rupture is less than the initial thickness of the flagellum by about 15-20%, and when bent, small cracks will appear. From skinny clay, the flagellum practically does not stretch, gives a rather uneven tear, and when bent, a large number of tears and cracks appear.
What to consider?
Testing by crushing the ball several times allows you to determine the normal clay, which will be ideally suited for the production of raw bricks, as well as for mortar for laying furnaces.
Quite often, during the test process, it will be necessary to mix several types of clay at the same time in order to make an ideal mortar for masonry, the proportions of which will meet the requested requirements. You will also need to add or remove sand if necessary. Only in this way you can choose the most optimal ratio of materials and make a really high-quality solution.
Are deviations allowed?
Even if there is a mistake, it is best to make a mistake in the direction of fat content, since for the operation of the furnace it is almost imperceptible. In the event that there is too much sand in the solution, this can significantly affect the overall strength of the masonry. If the solution is too greasy, the stucco can cause serious cracks, however, you can eliminate them using grout with a lot of sand and whitewashing in several approaches.
After the final choice, it remains just to prepare the desired solution.
How to prepare a solution?
Initially, the clay is soaked in a large box or trough, after which it is trampled in rubber boots until all clay lumps are crushed. It is worth noting that you can break them using a special rammer as well. After these procedures, you will need to carefully probe the solution with your hands to completely crush pieces of clay. In the event that the solution was mixed correctly, while the clay and sand are in the most optimal proportion, it will slide well with a trowel or steel shovel, that is, it will not stick to them reliably.
If you apply an even layer of such a solution to a brick, then put a second one on it and tap it, and then lift the upper one in about five minutes, then with the optimal quality of the solution, the lower one should not come off. Also, when lowering a stick into a normal solution (for example, it may be a shovel stalk), an insignificant trace should remain on it.