Hire a bricklayer and you are hiring one of the key members of any construction team. A skilled bricklayer is able to help with everything from creating small wall extensions up to and including whole home expansion projects.
Bricklaying is an inherently challenging career that takes years of practice to master. While anyone can learn the fundamentals, becoming an accomplished bricklayer requires hard work and time.
The Art of Laying Bricks
Bricklayers possess the skills and precision needed to lay bricks with precision and skill. Additionally, they possess the knowledge needed to construct strong and long-term structures by mixing mortar (a mixture of water, cement and sand). Most often bricklayers use running bonds in which each row alternates between three-quarter bricks and stretchers in order to minimize waste production.
A skilled bricklayer should provide helpful advice and offer an accurate quote for their services, informing you of any additional costs that might apply.
Bricklayers in Glasgow specialize in many projects for homeowners, including raised brick garden ponds. These attractive features add an attractive feature without needing to dig down and install an expensive pond liner; you can even customize its shape so it matches perfectly with your property.
The Art of Using Mortar
Bricklayers rely on mortar to secure their work, using it to bond bricks and concrete blocks together. Finding the ideal mixture requires patience and experience – finding it can take years!
Without mortar, brick walls would simply be piles of bricks stacked together – meaning even the slightest bump or gust of wind could send them crumbling down with unexpected force. Therefore it is imperative to hire only certified bricklayers when undertaking any brickwork project.
A good bricklayer will know how to mix their mortar correctly. This involves mixing all of the dry ingredients until their colour becomes uniform before slowly adding water at small increments until their mortar becomes soft and easy to work with. They’ll also calculate any potential wastage during their project in order to determine how many bags of cement and sand to purchase for their project.
The Art of Using Tools
Bricklayers must utilize various tools in order to complete their task successfully, while being mindful that one mistake could disrupt an entire project. They must mix mortar perfectly while cutting bricks with precision.
Bricklayers rely on tape measures as one of their essential tools, with these measuring tapes designed specifically to withstand rough stone and concrete surfaces and have rectangular shapes that prevent rolling away like cylindrical pencils would.
Chisels are essential tools, especially when used for shaping hard materials or cutting mortar and brick. Chisels can also be useful when it comes to laying header and stretcher bonds which require whole or half bricks stacked as patterns – saving material by decreasing custom made brick orders while decreasing waste or loss of materials.
The Art of Getting Things Done
Bricklayers utilize various construction materials and tools. Their duties may include reading blueprints, building walkways, patios and fireplaces from them, refurbishing chimneys and shaping bricks to fit corners as part of monumental masonry designs as well as using damp-resistant materials to seal foundations – often working as part of teams (known as “gangs”) working on large construction projects.
Bricklayers must liaise with other tradespeople, customers/clients and suppliers on an ongoing basis to complete projects effectively and on schedule. On average, they typically work 39 hours each week.
A gang of bricklayers will typically focus on one section at a time, each person taking on specific responsibilities. A fully qualified bricklayer serves as leader of this crew; setting daily schedules and making sure everyone has what they need for doing their jobs effectively such as tools, safety gear and vehicles for transportation between locations; often they’ll need to travel across several cities before their jobs can be finished successfully.
