Masonry tools: names, pictures and what each one is used for

The trowel, which is most of the decision

A bricklayer holds one tool almost continuously, and the wrong one causes wrist and elbow trouble within a season. So this is worth getting right rather than buying the cheapest on the rack.

Length is the main variable. A longer blade carries more mortar and is faster once your technique is there, and it is heavier all day. Most people are best on something in the middle, around 250 to 280 millimetres, and go longer only if they are laying full time.

The other thing is whether the blade and tang are forged in one piece. A one piece forging never works loose. A blade riveted or welded to a separate tang eventually does, and it always does it mid job.

Around 250 to 280 millimetres to start

Long enough to carry a decent load, short enough not to wear your wrist out while your technique is still forming.

One piece forged, not riveted

The joint between blade and tang is where trowels fail. A single forging has no joint to fail.

London pattern or Philadelphia

London has a narrower heel and suits brick. Philadelphia is wider and carries more, which suits block and stone.

Break a new trowel in

A new blade drags. It polishes with use, and rubbing it on a brick speeds that up. Do not judge one on the first day.

Left or right handed matters on some patterns

Blades are not always symmetrical. If it feels like it is fighting you, check which hand it was ground for.

Mortar, and why the mix decides the wall

Almost every wall that fails, fails at the mortar rather than the brick. Too strong a mix is the most common and least obvious error: cement rich mortar is harder than the brick beside it, so movement cracks the brick instead of the joint, and a cracked brick cannot be repointed.

Consistency matters as much as ratio. Mortar wants to hold its shape on the trowel and still spread, which is a texture you learn by feel. Adding water to bring back a batch that has started to go off changes the mix permanently and weakens it.

Softer than the brick, always

Mortar is the sacrificial part. It should be weaker than what it bonds so movement cracks the joint, which can be repointed.

Lime for old and soft brickwork

Cement on a Victorian wall traps moisture and spalls the faces off the bricks. Lime breathes and flexes, and it is what those walls were built with.

Batch by the same measure every time

A shovel is not a measure. Use a bucket or a gauge box, or the colour changes halfway up the wall and stays changed.

Never re temper a batch that has gone off

Adding water to stiff mortar buys workability and costs strength for good. Mix smaller batches instead.

Keep it out of the sun and off dry brick

Dry bricks in hot weather suck water out of the mortar before it can cure, so it never gains strength. Damp them down first.

The line does the thinking

Nobody lays a straight wall by eye. The line is what makes it straight, and the corners are what make the line right, which is why bricklayers build the corners first and fill between them.

Set the corners plumb and to gauge, run the line between them, and every brick in the middle simply follows. Check the plumb and the gauge as you go up rather than at the end, because an error that has been built on cannot be corrected.

Corners first, then fill between

The corners carry the accuracy. Raise them a few courses, run a line, and the middle looks after itself.

Gauge rod every course

A marked rod gives identical course heights all the way up. Measuring each joint by eye accumulates error you cannot hide.

Plumb both faces of a corner

A corner can be plumb one way and leaning the other. Check both directions, every few courses.

Line blocks over pins where you can

Blocks hook over the brick and tension the line without holes in the joint. Pins are quicker and leave a mark.

Keep the line taut and clear of the wall

A slack line sags in the middle and you will build the sag into the wall. So will a line resting on a proud brick.

What to buy first, in order

Stage one: laying

A brick trowel, a pointing trowel, a spirit level around 1.2 metres, a line and pins or blocks, a gauge rod, a brick jointer, a lump hammer, a bolster and a bucket. That is a working kit.

Stage two: cutting and mixing

A brick hammer, an angle grinder with a diamond blade, a mixing bucket and paddle or a small mixer, a shovel, a barrow and a spot board or mortar stand.

Stage three: finishing and repair

A plugging chisel, a raking bar or grinder for repointing, a churn brush, a hawk and a rendering float. Profile boards and a corner block if you build alone.

Stage four: stone and specialist

Stone chisels, a mash hammer, a pitching tool, a bull set, tongs and a banker. Buy these when the material stops being brick.

Mistakes that show forever

Mortar stronger than the brick

Movement then cracks the brick face rather than the joint. Repointing fixes a joint and nothing fixes a spalled brick.

Cement mortar on an old soft wall

It traps moisture behind the joint and blows the faces off the bricks over a few winters. Lime on anything pre war.

Smearing mortar on the face

It stains, and on some bricks the stain never comes out. Strike the joints at the right time and brush the wall down after.

Jointing too early or too late

Too wet and the joint smears and slumps. Too dry and it will not compress and crumbles out. Thumbprint firm is the test.

Building more than about a metre a day

Fresh mortar cannot carry the weight above it, and the wall slumps or the joints squeeze out. Height per day is a real limit.

Not filling the perpends

The vertical joints are structural too. A wall with hollow perpends is weak and lets water straight through.

No movement joints in long runs

Brickwork expands. Without a joint every few metres it will make its own, diagonally, through the bricks.

Looking after masonry tools

Wash everything before the mortar sets

Set mortar on a trowel has to be chipped off, and chipping ruins the edge. Two minutes in a bucket at the end of the day.

Never leave tools in the mortar tub

It sets around them overnight and pits the steel. It also rusts the tang inside the handle where you cannot see it.

Rub a trowel bright, do not grind it

A polished blade releases mortar cleanly. A ground one is rough again and drags until it re polishes.

Dress chisel heads before they mushroom

A spread head throws fragments when struck. File the burr off, and replace anything badly mushroomed.

Keep levels clean and check them

Dried mortar on the edge of a level makes it lie. Check it by reversing it against the same surface.

Store lines dry and wound

A knotted damp line is useless and it rots. Wound on the reel, in the bag, every time.

Frequently asked questions

What masonry tools do I need to start?

A brick trowel, a pointing trowel, a spirit level around 1.2 metres, a line with pins or blocks, a gauge rod, a brick jointer, a lump hammer and a bolster chisel. That is a working bricklaying kit and none of it is expensive.

What size brick trowel should I buy?

Around 250 to 280 millimetres to begin with. Longer blades carry more mortar and are faster with good technique, but they are heavier over a full day and hard on the wrist while you are still learning.

What is the difference between a brick trowel and a pointing trowel?

A brick trowel is large, for picking up and spreading mortar and cutting bricks. A pointing trowel is small and narrow, for pressing mortar into joints and tidying them. They are not interchangeable in either direction.

Why should mortar be weaker than the brick?

Mortar is the sacrificial part of a wall. Walls move, and if the mortar is softer than the brick the joint cracks, which can be repointed. If the mortar is harder, the brick face cracks or spalls instead, and that cannot be repaired.

Should I use lime or cement mortar?

Lime for old and soft brickwork, roughly anything pre war, because it breathes and flexes with the wall. Cement for modern brick and block. Cement mortar on a Victorian wall traps moisture and blows the faces off the bricks over a few winters.

How high can I build in a day?

Roughly a metre, and less in cold or wet weather. Fresh mortar cannot carry much weight, so building higher makes the lower joints squeeze out and the wall slump. It is a real physical limit rather than a guideline.

When should I joint or point the mortar?

When the mortar is thumbprint firm, meaning a thumb leaves a mark but does not sink in. Too wet and the joint smears and slumps, too dry and it will not compress and crumbles out later.

What is a gauge rod and do I need one?

A batten marked with course heights, held against the work to check every course is the same. Yes, you need one, because judging joint thickness by eye accumulates error that becomes obvious and unfixable a metre up.

What is the difference between a bolster and a plugging chisel?

A bolster is wide and used to split bricks and blocks cleanly. A plugging chisel is narrow with a tapered blade for raking old mortar out of a joint before repointing, without damaging the brick either side.

Can I cut bricks with an angle grinder?

Yes, with a diamond blade, and it gives the cleanest cut. Cut wet or with extraction, because dry cutting masonry releases fine silica dust that causes permanent lung damage. A bolster and lump hammer works for rougher cuts.

Why is the mortar on my wall two different colours?

The batches were mixed differently, almost always because the sand or cement was measured by the shovel rather than by a bucket or gauge box. It does not fade out, so the answer is to measure the same way every time.

What is a hawk used for?

A flat board with a handle underneath that holds a load of mortar or plaster close to the work, so you are not returning to the board for every trowel full. Rendering and plastering both depend on it.