Bricklayers: templates and tools

Formation of high-quality and reliable brickwork is not an easy task, but you can cope with it without involving a team of experienced craftsmen. The main thing is to use the right tools and devices in your work, which will make the installation easier and faster.

Let's take a closer look at what templates and tools can be used when it comes to creating a brick structure.

As with other construction work, it is customary to use special tools and devices when creating brickwork. Most of them are usually bought in specialized stores, but it is permissible to use home-made devices. Of course, the latter are more often approached by more experienced craftsmen who come across such works quite often.

Let's take a closer look at what standard tools exist and what their purpose is.

• Trowel (or trowel)... This fixture is a compact paddle with a flat surface for better grip. It is necessary for laying the binder on brick blocks. Then this composition is carefully spread with a trowel. With the help of this device, excess pieces of mortar are also removed.
• Embroidery... This device looks like a narrow groove fixed to the handle. Joining is required for high-quality molding of seams, control over the level of their thickness, and removal of excess pieces of the composition. Joints are convex and concave. It is also important to consider its profile when choosing this fixture.

• Small hammer... A well-chosen hammer will be required for cutting brick parts in order to give them the required dimensional parameters and shapes. Also, with the help of this tool, it will be possible to correct minor inaccuracies of installation on a binder solution that is not yet fixed (or not completely fixed).
• Building level... Most construction work is not complete without this device. The level allows you to check whether the base you are working with is horizontal or vertical. The most popular are bubble and laser models. The latter, of course, are more expensive, but they are easier to use.

• Plumb line... This is a device that is a weight in the form of a cone or a bullet. It is fixed on threads that do not have elasticity. Thanks to the plumb line, the master has the opportunity to control the verticality of the structures being erected in relation to the displacement of the thread fixation point on the horizontal section.
• Template, reiki, rule and other devices that are necessary to control the conformity of the shape of the structure.

• Berth... This thing is a non-elastic thread of high density. It stretches along the rows of brickwork and is used as a linearity guide.
• Ordering... Simply put, it is a large ruler, corresponding to the smallest width of a row of blocks.

• Cuvette... This tool is also called a dispenser. It is a small tank without a bottom. The walls in it can be either straight or beveled.With the use of a dispenser, it becomes possible to correctly measure the required amount of a binder solution for a specific section of the seam and immediately give it the required length and width.
• Dispenser-ordering... This is a cuvette, supplemented with marking mechanisms. In addition, such devices are often distinguished by an adjustable length indicator and the presence of supporting mechanisms.
• Complex dispenser... This "assistant" consists of a level and other instrumentation. It may also contain additional components necessary for forming shaped seams.

The template can be a very useful and effective tool for quickly laying bricks. You can do it yourself. Of course, you can purchase ready-made models from the hardware store. As a rule, such products have the ability to adjust all dimensional parameters. If you want to save money, then it is better to start making the template yourself.

First, you should focus on the basic geometric parameters of the masonry joint (meaning height and width). In this case, much depends on the material used in construction. Based on the laying technology and the blocks used, the dimensions of the template niche are revealed.

To build a template, you will need:

• a plastic box of the appropriate size (or a sheet of plywood);
• pencil;
• level;
• ruler;
• drill (it is better to use an electric tool - it is more convenient and faster to work with it);
• fasteners;
• special corners made of steel;
• screwdriver;
• screwdriver;
• hammer.

If you can find a suitable plastic box, then the template will be much easier to make. In addition, plastic itself is a stronger and stronger material, but at the same time it is light enough, which is very important when performing masonry work. If you did not find such a reservoir, then you can make a model of the required dimensions yourself from laminated chipboard sheets, plywood or slats.

The design should consist of several main components.

• Frame with longitudinally spaced wooden walls. The space between the wooden planks should be appropriate for the thickness of the wall. Since these planks will have lower parts protruding forward, they will be convenient with their help to align the bricks during laying.
• Carrying handles. Thanks to these details, it will be much easier and more convenient to use the device.
• Transverse details. They are mainly made from special strip steel. This element makes it possible to keep the linearity of the masonry under control.

In the modern market for building materials and tools, there are many practical and easy-to-use items, with the use of which the creation of brickwork is simplified at times. It is worth considering in more detail what tools are usually used by professional masons when laying out bricks, when making seams between individual blocks and for stretching the cord.

This category includes fixtures purchased for the preparation of wall bases, as well as for cladding brick facades. Without these devices, a bricklayer will not be able to work efficiently and efficiently. Indispensable in this case is a trowel called a trowel. As stated earlier, it is a triangular spatula with a bent handle. The standard length of such a scapula is about 18-19 cm.

Also, a bricklayer needs a trowel for brickwork.They are laid with a binder mortar of the required thickness on a brick base. In addition, the seams between the individual bricks are lubricated with a trowel. They also remove excess solution.

The second most important is hammer pickaxe. Its length is usually 30 cm... One side of this tool can be set aside for tapping bricks so that the material fits as tightly as possible in the correct position, and the other - to poke bricks and cut.

With a mortar spade, the still fresh building composition is mixed until a homogeneous consistency. In addition, the mixture is laid with it on a wall base if it is wider than 1 brick.

In addition, the bricklayer must control the level of the brickwork so that it is perfectly flat.

To do this, use:

• level;
• plumb line;
• square;
• order.

It doesn't matter if you are laying blocks to construct a wall, pillars, spiral arches or columns. In any case, you need to competently process the seams between the individual bricks, sealing them with special tools.

It is rather difficult to give the joints between the blocks an aesthetic look without the use of special devices. Usually, jointing is used for this. The length of this device can be up to 130-150 mm. As a rule, the jointing is a thin and narrow plate that resembles a small knife.

With the use of jointing, it is possible to grout joints of almost any type.

It can be:

• single-cut;
• double-cut;
• convex;
• concave;
• trimmed joints.

If we are talking about the process of laying brick blocks for constructing a wall base, then first prepare the corner parts. Only then are the remaining structural elements assembled.

In this case, the mooring cord allows you to lay out all the bricks, adhering to a single level. Basically, the cord is made from fishing line, nylon or a very strong thread. Most often, it is attached with ordinary nails to the masonry or immediately to the order.

When choosing a trowel, it should be borne in mind that there are two types of this tool:

• K-B - options with a triangular blade;
• K-P - fixtures with rounded corners and a pointed base.

It can be difficult even for experienced craftsmen to transfer the masonry composition with a perfectly even layer of the required height. That is why experts recommend using a special template. If you don't want to do it yourself, you can buy a ready-made version in the store.

A ready-made template can be used not only for laying out the correct rows of bricks, but also for laying different blocks, for example, aerated concrete or slag.

Wood versions should be treated with a varnish characterized by high wear resistance. For example, it can be an effective parquet composition. NS

When making a template yourself, you can prepare simple drawings in advance. This will make it easier to create a structure. At the end of work, any tools should be well cleaned of residues of solutions and mixtures.If this is not done, they will quickly fail.

For an overview of the template for laying bricks, see the next video.