Any Stone Masons on PH???
Discussion
I'm just wondering whether PH has any resident stone masons? Not talking carving or anything fancy, rather stone walls for a farmhouse. I've got the stone by virtue of driving a 17ton digger through/over/in the old farmhouse and setting what was left of it on fire ( cathartic fun for all the family ), i'm half tempted to try and learn to do it myself, but the wife would complain when the walls fell off so I better pay someone.
Spudler said:
Timmy40 said:
i'm half tempted to try and learn to do it myself
Don't even think about it.Most brickies shouldn't even think about it.
Post up a pic of the stone.
Drystone? If so I can't help. At the moment I am building a 50cm wide 3metre high granit stone wall which will incorporate a gothic stone arch doorway..
It has no uniform rows of stone.Its more like finding a suitable face on a stone each side of wall then infill with smaller stone,sometimes a full 50cm stone stretching across.
I use a sharp sand/cement mix semi dry with the joint left raked out that will be flush lime pointed after its construction.
It has no uniform rows of stone.Its more like finding a suitable face on a stone each side of wall then infill with smaller stone,sometimes a full 50cm stone stretching across.
I use a sharp sand/cement mix semi dry with the joint left raked out that will be flush lime pointed after its construction.
magooagain said:
Drystone? If so I can't help. At the moment I am building a 50cm wide 3metre high granit stone wall which will incorporate a gothic stone arch doorway..
It has no uniform rows of stone.Its more like finding a suitable face on a stone each side of wall then infill with smaller stone,sometimes a full 50cm stone stretching across.
I use a sharp sand/cement mix semi dry with the joint left raked out that will be flush lime pointed after its construction.
why not just build it using lime alone?It has no uniform rows of stone.Its more like finding a suitable face on a stone each side of wall then infill with smaller stone,sometimes a full 50cm stone stretching across.
I use a sharp sand/cement mix semi dry with the joint left raked out that will be flush lime pointed after its construction.
Pistonheads' own Otter Smacker is learning how to be a stone mason; he's put up a few pics of his handiwork on the Trivial thread.
Give it go yourself!
But, be prepared of the frustration that it may cause through having to take down and redo the part that took you 2 hours to build!
I taught myself and have managed to do around 30 odd metres from scratch. The more you do, the easier it gets.
This was the first wall I did:
This was the second wall - it's actually a curved wall.
All of these are drystone. I'm still waiting to find some coping stones to finish it off!
If however you want to use mortar, please use lime mortar and not cement based mortar. If you mix the lime mortar the day before, the workability and stickiness of the mortar is very similar to that of cement when you come to use it.
But, be prepared of the frustration that it may cause through having to take down and redo the part that took you 2 hours to build!
I taught myself and have managed to do around 30 odd metres from scratch. The more you do, the easier it gets.
This was the first wall I did:
This was the second wall - it's actually a curved wall.
All of these are drystone. I'm still waiting to find some coping stones to finish it off!
If however you want to use mortar, please use lime mortar and not cement based mortar. If you mix the lime mortar the day before, the workability and stickiness of the mortar is very similar to that of cement when you come to use it.
jason61c said:
It just seems wrong to use cement thats all 
Not sure we are on the same track. I am building with very uniform lumps of granit. Not one is the same. So every time you lay the stone it dictates the next one.No retangular pieces.
The project is garden /courtyard. So not house related. There is no need to use Lyme apart for pointing purpose.
C Lee Farquar said:
I would have thought the only benefit of using lime with granite is cosmetic.
The stone will be harder and less porous that a cement mortar mix.
We're building our house with a 3:1 lime mix so I am an advocate, but there are situations where a cement mix is the best solution.
Half a spade of white cement is your friend! I say white just in case the Conservation Officer comes snooping around The stone will be harder and less porous that a cement mortar mix.
We're building our house with a 3:1 lime mix so I am an advocate, but there are situations where a cement mix is the best solution.
....... and burn the bag
I'm a builder and I specialise in stonework. It is hard work if you decide to build the walls yourself, my back starts hurting after doing it for more than 2 weeks and I'm only 27. To do a nice job will take a lot of time if you haven't done any before, with a labourer I can usually do 4m2 a day depending on the quality of the stone. A few pics of my work
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