Saw a crew in Tacoma mixing mud way too wet for a brick wall

They were adding water straight from a hose without measuring, and the mix looked like soup. That was two weeks ago, and I guarantee that wall will have efflorescence problems within a year. We used to mix by feel, but now I always use a gauge to get the right slump. How do you guys keep your new hires from rushing the mix?

3 comments

3 Comments

kelly.dylan2mo ago

Man, that's brutal. @mason_craig34 is right about the gauge, but we also time the new guys. If a batch gets mixed in under four minutes, it's probably wrong. We make them watch the clock and the slump together so they learn what "right" actually feels like, not just fast.

mason_craig342mo ago

Yeah mixing by feel is a gamble. Buddy of mine had a whole patio crew do that, and the client called back six months later with white crap all over the stones. Now he makes the new guys mix the first five batches with a gauge right in front of him.

wendy_ross712mo ago

White crap all over the stones" got me. That's efflorescence, right? So they messed up the mix so bad it's pulling salts out six months later. That's not just a bad pour, that's a total redo. I can't believe a whole crew thought they could wing it. Your buddy's method with the gauge for the first five batches is the only way to beat that habit out of them.