Viewing 22 posts - 1 through 22 (of 22 total)
  • Making a brick wall shorter – how hard can it be?
  • WorldClassAccident
    Free Member

    MrsWCA wants the brick wall between our front garden and the road made lower. She wants it dropping by about 4 rows of bricks.

    It is a single skin brick wall with a row of coping stones on top. There are Brick pillars every six feet or so that are 1.5 bricks on each edge.

    Is this just a case of taking the coping stones off, running a disc cutter along the mortar at the appropriate height, removing the extra bricks and then cementing the coping stones back on?

    gwaelod
    Free Member

    1 – get a load of topsoil and fill up the garden with it.

    or 2 – buy her one of those plastic blue steps from ikea

    voodoo_chile
    Full Member

    Wca , I can see a wca special coming on …. Tea and biscuits anyone !

    br
    Free Member

    I wouldn’t bother with a grinder, just chisel them off.

    nickjb
    Free Member

    What br said. Take off the coping stones. Might need a tap with a hammer and chisel. Then work down from the top one brick at a time. The mortar should be weaker than the bricks.

    cbmotorsport
    Free Member

    Cold chisel. Knock em off one by one.

    sugdenr
    Free Member

    depends on how good your mortar is, I find if its strong then good luck getting them all off clean, otherwise be prepared for some make good when the fracture line goes its own way. running a deep cut with a grinder is like glass or tile cutting – creates a weak seam for it break along.

    WorldClassAccident
    Free Member

    good luck getting them all off clean, otherwise be prepared for some make good when the fracture line goes its own way

    That was my concern with just knocking the bricks off. Plus hammering the length of the wall to remove four layers of bricks one at a time seems like hard work.

    Grinder along the motor either side to create the break point. Cut straight down to create a series of big blocks which get knocked out one by one. Might use the brick by brick method on the towers though.

    spooky_b329
    Full Member

    Get an SDS+ drill with a chisel bit, it’ll be kinder than hammering the bricks off. Or avoid the cost and stitch drill the mortar. This way you can knock off the top four courses in one go.

    Inbred456
    Free Member

    Are we allowed to ask why your good lady wants the wall height lowering?

    WorldClassAccident
    Free Member

    stitch drill the mortar. This way you can knock off the top four courses in one go

    I have access to 12″ disc cutter which makes it a whole lot easier than stitch drilling but the plan is the same. Cut a line 4 bricks lower, a couple of vertical cuts so it comes down in manageable sized pieces and then lump hammer the big bits.

    Are we allowed to ask why your good lady wants the wall height lowering?
    I have only been with her for 24 years. I have yet to fathom how she thinks or why she decides things suddenly become essential.

    slowoldgit
    Free Member

    Save the bricks in case the GL changes her mind when it’s done.

    burt
    Free Member

    I have only been with her for 24 years. I have yet to fathom how she thinks or why she decides things suddenly become essential.
    Oh god it goes on that long?

    grannygrinder
    Free Member

    If you use the hammer and chisel method go in from the end and along rather than in from the side. This will hopefully prevent you knocking more off than you need too

    Inbred456
    Free Member

    I kind of thought it would be something like that. My good lady wants me to remove a 5ft rose hedge that is lethal if you touch it ( keeps the local yoofs off ) provides some much needed privacy with a bloody lavender hedge that will look good for about a month once a year standing about a ft high.

    wrightyson
    Free Member

    Bolster tho. Not cold chisel. And depending on the type age of the copers they may well snap.

    natrix
    Free Member

    Could you do it with some sort of industrial laser? I’m sure that it would be a lot more fun than using a disc cutter 8)

    Or maybe a shaped explosive charge? 😯 If you have access to explosives, I’m sure that’s the way to go. 8)

    brakes
    Free Member

    I have only been with her for 24 years. I have yet to fathom how she thinks or why she decides things suddenly become essential.

    it’s obvious, she wants you to get a man in so you have more time to go riding.

    sugdenr
    Free Member

    I have access to 12″ disc cutter

    Mask and goggles, plus tape up your collars and cuffs, that’s one dusty mess you are about to get covered in!

    I have yet to fathom how she thinks or why she decides things suddenly become essential

    I call it my wife’s radar, once its locked on…….

    jag61
    Full Member

    book her on a diy course?
    its obviously not a big job
    we dont want another gruesome photo thread…(or do we)
    did the conversation start with wouldnt it be good if…
    do you think that… can you just … it wont take you long so …
    have you in the distant past mentioned this wall height problem? if so only got yourself to blame so get going

    takisawa2
    Full Member

    Hammer, chisel & set to work man.
    Grab a hose if your disc cuttering.

    donald
    Free Member

    Does it involve ladders? I really hope it doesn’t involve ladders.

Viewing 22 posts - 1 through 22 (of 22 total)

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