p.k. wrote:
:: Chris French and Helen Johnson wrote:
::: A standard bricklaying mortar is builders sand and cement. For wide
::: joints in paving, as the OP is using, then I would use a mix of sharp
::: sand (called grit sand in some areas)
::
:: I disagree - a sharp sand mortar has a coarse visual texture and a
:: variety of colour from the large mixed grains that fight with the
:: texture of the paving slab (beit stone, reconstituted tone or simple
:: concrete) I would ALWAYS us a soft sand and cement mortar for pointing
:: paving.
::

I agree.

:: A simple technique I have used in my garden several times is to water the
:: joints well, leave for an hour till the top surface is dry and then
:: brush in ready mixed dry sand cement mortar (kiln dried sand and cement
:: in bags from B&Q: Note the ready dry mix type, not that with a separate
:: bag of cement with semi damp sand) carefully brush all excess off the
:: top surface using a small hand brush and hey presto the residual
:: moisture is drawn up into the dry sand/cement mix and you have a nice
:: neat recessed mortar joint. Tommy of Ground force uses the same
:: technique.
::
I think the most telling words in this paragraph are, 'several
times'...brush pointing like this is IMV a waste of time, sand and cement.
mortar needs to be compressed, I have used this method a few times and it's
never lasted more than a few weeks, *unless* you go over it with a jointing
tool or trowel and force the mixture down, then sprinkle and brush again to
get the rest of the joint filled and trowel down again.

to try this yourself, mix a handfull of sand and cement dry and leave it in
a bucket - you can crumble it up a fortnight later with your bare hands

:: Not a technique to use on prestige jobs where the pointing finish is a
:: design element in itself, but more than ok in most general situations -
:: and takes a small fraction of the time wet pointing takes and is far
:: less messy. Good up to a 10mm joint, more and I would suggest a semi dry
:: hand pointing mix

It's good up to a 20mm joint if it's done in two or three stages, even this
takes a fraction of the time of doing it all 'manually'...to fill a 50mm
(deep) X 20 mm (wide) gap takes quite a lot of sand / cement, next time you
do it, fill it to the top and then go all over with a thin metal tube or
brickies jointer, this will give you another 20mm to fill, once brushed over
a second time, this will again drop down with the jointer, about 5 - 10mm
but it will be solid all the way down.


--
If God had intended us to drink beer, He would have given us stomachs.