Taunton’s Masonry Complete Expert Advice from Start to Finish

258 Pages·2012·42.14 MB·English

by  Cody MacFie

Taunton’s
masonry
complete
expert advice from start to finish
cody macfie
photography by John ross
Taunton’s
masonry
complete
expert advice from start to finish
Text © 2012 by Cody Macfie
Photographs © 2012 by The Taunton Press, Inc.
Illustrations © 2012 by The Taunton Press, Inc.
All rights reserved.
Pp
The Taunton Press, Inc.,
63 South Main Street, PO Box 5506,
Newtown, CT 06470-5506
e-mail: [email protected]
Editors: Joe Provey, John Ross
Copy editor: Katy Zirwes Scott
Indexer: Barbara Mortenson
Cover design: Kimberly Adis
Interior design: Kimberly Adis
Layout: Kerstin Fairbend
Illustrator: Christopher Mills
Photographer: John Ross
Front cover photographer: Scott Phillips
The following manufacturers/names appearing in Masonry Complete are trademarks: craigslistSM, Frog Tape®, Tyvek®
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Macfie, Cody, 1976-
Tauton’s masonry complete : expert advice from start to finish / by Cody Macfie ; editors of Fine homebuilding.
pages cm. -- (Taunton’s complete)
Summary: “This volume is a comprehensive, authoritative, and easy-to-use reference for homeowners covering all home masonry
projects from the most basic to advanced”-- Provided by publisher.
E-Book ISBN 978-1-62113-670-8
1. Masonry--Amateurs’ manuals. I. Fine homebuilding. II. Title. III. Title: Masonry complete.
TH5313.M28 2012
693’.1--dc23
2012028511
Printed in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Construction is inherently dangerous. Using hand or power tools improperly or ignoring safety practices can lead to permanent
injury or even death. Don’t try to perform operations you learn about here (or elsewhere) unless you’re certain they are safe for you.
If something about an operation doesn’t feel right, don’t do it. Look for another way. We want you to enjoy working on your project,
so please keep safety foremost in your mind.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I owe a special debt of gratitude to my wife, Carolyn, and our two boys, Jack
and Thomas, for being patient enough to let me write this book amid our
rigorous schedule and busy family life.
Thanks to John Ross, an outstanding person, editor, and photographer!
Thanks also to Dan Morrison, for giving me my fi rst shot at writing for Fine
Homebuilding magazine, and to Chris Ermides, my former Fine Homebuilding
editor, for bringing the possibility of this book to my attention. Special thanks
go to Peter Chapman, executive editor, for promptly answering all of my
questions and keeping us all on the right track. Thanks to the whole crew at
Taunton, including Katy Scott, Christina Glennon, and Joe Provey.
Big thanks to Keenan Smith, for helping me make these projects a success,
and to Sam Benton, for supplying us with the best material possible. A big
hand goes to our hard-working masonry crews, who are ultimately responsible
for creating these wonderful projects.
Thanks also to the homeowners and property owners for giving us a place to
stage the projects in this book, and for allowing us to photograph the fi nished
projects: Susan Van Ness, Keenan Smith, John Macfi e, Chris Faulkner, Cemex,
B & L Distributing Co., Inc. of S.C., Jack and Linda Lyons, 4-Rent Inc., French
Broad Stone Supply, Inc., Vulcan Materials Co., Victor McHenry, Colin Shaw,
Christ School, and Tom and Sebring Lewis.
—Cody Macfi e
s
t
n
e
t
n
designing tools and Materials
o with techniques and
Masonry 18 Methods
2 50
c
Basic tools
designing patios, 20 Shaping Tools Finishing
paths, and Walls 24 Make a Clean Break Materials
Using Chisel and Sledge
4 Designing Your Project 52 Natural Stone
25 Dress a Corner Stone
5 Patios 56 Manufactured Stone
with Hammer and Chisel
7 Paths 57 Brick
26 Setting Tools
9 Walls 58 Block
28 Pointers and Jointers
11 Columns and Stairs
29 Spreading Mortar for
Mix Materials
Concrete Block
locating and sizing 30 Dry-Grouting Flagstones 61 Mortar and Concrete
your project and Capstones 62 Hand-Mixing Mortar
13 Location, Location, Location 32 Layout Tools
38 Cutting Tools
setting and
creating With style reinForceMent
14 Stonework excavation and Materials
earth-Moving
16 Brick 66 Wire Mesh and Lath
tools
17 Stucco 67 Wall Ties and
40 Digging Tools Anchors
41 Moving Equipment 68 Rebar
deMolition and synthetic
specialty tools Materials
43 Demolition Tools and 69 Barriers, Filters, and
Equipment Membranes
44 Mortar Mixers
45 Soil Compactors
46 Scaffolding
cleanup tools
and saFety gear
48 Cleanup Tools
48 Safety Equipment
PLANNING DRY-STACK STONE PATIO
AND RETAINING 98
PREPARATION WALL
GENERAL
70 82
PREPARAtioN
PLANNiNG oN PAPER GENERAL 100 Practical Considerations
PREPARAtioN 101 Before You Begin
72 Drawing a Site Plan
73 Estimating Costs 84 Practical Considerations
PAtio PREPARAtioN
74 E stimating Time to 86 Before You Begin
Finish 102 A pplying Antifracture
Membrane
74 Talking to the Pros SEttiNG thE FootiNG
103 Let Twine Be Your Guide
88 Setting a Dry-Stack Footing
PREPARiNG thE
SEttiNG thE StoNES
JoB SitE ADDiNG A DRAiN LiNE
105 Setting Perimeter Stones
75 P rotecting the 90 Installing a Drain Line 107 Setting Edge Stones
Surroundings
91 Adding a Drain-Line T 110 Fitting Stones
77 E stablishing Staging
Areas 112 Setting Stones
SEttiNG thE StoNES
SitE LAyoUt 93 Setting Wall Stones GRoUtiNG AND
78 From Plan to Ground 96 Setting Capstones SEALiNG
80 Preparing for Excavation 114 Dry-Mix Grouting
116 Using a Grout Bag
>> >> >> >>
s
t
n
e
t
n
o
c
BRICK STEPS WITH BLOCK WALL BRICK
VENEER WALLS WITH STUCCO WALKWAY
118 134 156 174
GENERAL GENERAL GENERAL GENERAL
PREPARATION PREPARATION PREPARATION PREPARATION
120 Practical Considerations 136 Practical Considerations 158 Practical Considerations 176 Practical Considerations
121 Before You Begin 136 Before You Begin 159 Before You Begin 177 Before You Begin
137 Designing Stairs
PREPARING THE WALL INSTALLING THE PREPARING THE
122 F lashing, Fasteners, and SITE FOOTING BASE
Wall Prep PREPARATION 159 Layout and Excavation 178 Excavation
138 Demolition 162 P ouring a Concrete 180 Installing the Base
LAYING BRICK Footing
124 L aying the First Course INSTALLING SETTING BRICKS
126 Laying and Weaving Bricks CONCRETE BLOCK LAYING BLOCK 182 Adding a Mortared Edge
142 Making a Mock-Up 165 L aying the First Course 184 Setting Field Bricks
of Block
LAYING A WINDOW SILL 143 Laying Block
168 Completing the Wall
128 Creating Rowlock Cap ADDING STEPS
PREPARING THE
SETTING CAPSTONES 186 Installing a Step
TREADS
BRICK-VENEERED
STEPS 145 Shaping Stones for Treads 170 Shaping, Setting, and
Grouting Capstones
131 L aying Brick Veneer
on Steps SETTING STONE
VENEER AND STAIR FINISHING WITH
TREADS STUCCO
147 Setting Risers 172 A pplying the Brown Coat
and Stucco
149 Setting Stair Treads
CREATING WING WALLS
150 D esigning Matching Wing
Walls
151 Building Wing Walls
153 Adding Electrical Conduit
155 F inishing the Wall With
Capstones
MAILBOX MANUFACTURED FIRE PIT WITH
COLUMN STONE SEAT WALLS
188 FIREPLACE 220
202
GENERAL GENERAL
PREPARAtioN PREPARAtioN
GENERAL
190 Practical Considerations PREPARAtioN 222 Practical Considerations
190 Before You Begin 204 Practical Considerations 223 Before You Begin
204 Before You Begin
iNstALLiNG A
buiLdiNG thE
FootiNG
GRAvEL bAsE
LAth ANd sCRAtCh
191 Layout and Excavation
CoAt 224 Layout and Excavation
192 A dding Rebar and
Concrete 205 Cutting and Securing Lath
207 Applying a Scratch Coat buiLdiNG thE
FiRE-Pit WALLs
sEttiNG thE bLoCK
CoRE LAYiNG CuLtuREd 226 Laying the First Row
stoNE 229 Continuing the Coursework
194 A ligning and Setting the
First Block 209 Laying the Stone 232 Finishing the Coursework
195 A dding Blocks to Make 211 A Matter of Aesthetics
a Column iNstALLiNG
CAPstoNEs
LAYiNG thE hEARth
AddiNG stoNE
ANd sEttiNG thE 234 Shaping Curved Capstones
vENEER
KEYstoNE 235 Setting Capstones
196 Shaping Stone
213 Shaping and Setting
197 Setting Stone Veneer Hearthstones buiLdiNG
200 A dding a Newspaper 216 S etting Stones around FREEstANdiNG
Holder and Mailbox the Fireplace sEAt WALLs
236 L aying Out the Seat Walls
sEttiNG CAPstoNEs iNstALLiNG A stoNE
ANd GRoutiNG MANtEL 238 Installing the Footing
239 Building Mortared Walls
201 Shaping and Setting 218 S etting the Corbels and
Capstones Mantel 241 Setting the Seat Capstones
201 Grouting
APPENdiX:
MAsoNRY REPAiR
242
GLossARY
246
iNdEX
248
DeSigning
With maSonrY
C
hoosing what type of masonry stucco is a great finish to add to a retaining
you will use on your project can be a wall or as siding on a house. stonework is
challenge, especially since there are so attractive for just about everything, from
many good options available. i live in a brick garden pathways to front porches. Brick looks
home that was built in 1923. there are tudor- good when used in steps to the front porch
style stucco sections on the front of the house or in a walkway leading to the front door. you
and a granite stone fireplace in the living room. can also mix masonry materials. Brick steps
Despite the variety, it looks great. you may live look just fine with stone treads. Keep in mind,
in a brick house, or a stone or stucco house, however, that each masonry finish has its own
but you can still introduce other masonry unique appearance and installation process.
treatments.
Designing locating anD creating
patios, paths, sizing your with style
anD walls project
Stonework, p. 14
Designing Your Project, Location, Location, Brick, p. 16
p. 4 Location, p. 13
Stucco, p. 17
Patios, p. 5
Paths, p. 7
Walls, p. 9
Columns and Stairs, p. 11