I was looking at the mortar additives in Wickes t'other day and read the 
label on the Mortar Plasticiser 
http://www.wickes.co.uk/Cement-Additives/Mortar-Plasticiser/invt/240669

Don't really do much with mortar, replace the odd brick on a garden wall, 
that sort of thing, just curious really.

It says that it;

'Removes grittiness from mortar'

Not sure what that means & why it would be a benefit in practice?

'Improves workability and adhesion'

Again, not sure what 'workability' means in practice.  Improved adhesion 
would make rendering small areas easier, but does it work?

'Minimises cracking and crazing'

Got that one!

'Reduces water to cement ratio'

Why would that be a benefit?

The stuffs not expensive but overall is it worth using & does it work?


-- 
Dave - The Medway Handyman
www.medwayhandyman.co.uk

"The Medway Handyman"  wrote in message 
news:uEnzk.57857$E41.11194@text.news.virginmedia.com...
>I was looking at the mortar additives in Wickes t'other day and read the 
>label on the Mortar Plasticiser 
>http://www.wickes.co.uk/Cement-Additives/Mortar-Plasticiser/invt/240669
>
> Don't really do much with mortar, replace the odd brick on a garden wall, 
> that sort of thing, just curious really.
>
> It says that it;
>
> 'Removes grittiness from mortar'
>
> Not sure what that means & why it would be a benefit in practice?
>
> 'Improves workability and adhesion'
>
> Again, not sure what 'workability' means in practice.  Improved adhesion 
> would make rendering small areas easier, but does it work?
>
> 'Minimises cracking and crazing'
>
> Got that one!
>
> 'Reduces water to cement ratio'
>
> Why would that be a benefit?
>
> The stuffs not expensive but overall is it worth using & does it work?
>
>
> -- 
> Dave - The Medway Handyman
> www.medwayhandyman.co.uk
>
>

Dunno about all that but I thought it was used for protection against water 
seepage?

The Medway Handyman wrote:
> I was looking at the mortar additives in Wickes t'other day and read the 
> label on the Mortar Plasticiser 
> http://www.wickes.co.uk/Cement-Additives/Mortar-Plasticiser/invt/240669
> 
> Don't really do much with mortar, replace the odd brick on a garden wall, 
> that sort of thing, just curious really.
> 
> It says that it;
> 
> 'Removes grittiness from mortar'
> 
> Not sure what that means & why it would be a benefit in practice?
> 
> 'Improves workability and adhesion'
> 
> Again, not sure what 'workability' means in practice.  Improved adhesion 
> would make rendering small areas easier, but does it work?
> 
> 'Minimises cracking and crazing'
> 
> Got that one!
> 
> 'Reduces water to cement ratio'
> 
> Why would that be a benefit?
> 
> The stuffs not expensive but overall is it worth using & does it work?
> 
> 

Just to point out that quite a number of cements do actually have such 
additives already, well, added. E.g. some/all Mastercrete. Think there 
might be something in the FAQs about it.

-- 
Rod

Hypothyroidism is a seriously debilitating condition with an insidious 
onset.
Although common it frequently goes undiagnosed.
<www.thyromind.info> <www.thyroiduk.org> <www.altsupportthyroid.org>

The Medway Handyman wrote:
> I was looking at the mortar additives in Wickes t'other day and read the 
> label on the Mortar Plasticiser 
> http://www.wickes.co.uk/Cement-Additives/Mortar-Plasticiser/invt/240669
> 
> Don't really do much with mortar, replace the odd brick on a garden wall, 
> that sort of thing, just curious really.
> 
> It says that it;
> 
> 'Removes grittiness from mortar'
> 
> Not sure what that means & why it would be a benefit in practice?
> 
> 'Improves workability and adhesion'
> 
> Again, not sure what 'workability' means in practice.  Improved adhesion 
> would make rendering small areas easier, but does it work?
> 
> 'Minimises cracking and crazing'
> 
> Got that one!
> 
> 'Reduces water to cement ratio'
> 
> Why would that be a benefit?
> 
> The stuffs not expensive but overall is it worth using & does it work?
> 
> 

Basically does the same as washing up liquid i.e. reduces the amount of 
water you need, which in theory results in a stronger end product. 
Cement plasticisers are normally lignosulphonates I believe. Very small 
molecules but doesn't foam significantly

Rod wrote:

> Just to point out that quite a number of cements do actually have such 
> additives already, well, added. E.g. some/all Mastercrete. Think there 
> might be something in the FAQs about it.

The yellow plastic bagged version has it, the paper bagged one does not 
IIUC. (the topic seems to acquire "holy war" status between advocates of 
each type!

-- 
Cheers,

John.

/=================================================================\
|          Internode Ltd -  http://www.internode.co.uk            |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
|        John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk              |
\=================================================================/

The Medway Handyman wrote:

> Don't really do much with mortar, replace the odd brick on a garden wall, 
> that sort of thing, just curious really.

well, I am not an expert either on this, but for what is is worth:

> It says that it;
> 
> 'Removes grittiness from mortar'
> 
> Not sure what that means & why it would be a benefit in practice?

Suggesting it should flow better I expect - makes it easier to tap a 
brick into final position perhaps (or by the same mechanism, slump too 
much that you need to redo it!)

> 'Improves workability and adhesion'
> 
> Again, not sure what 'workability' means in practice.  Improved adhesion 
> would make rendering small areas easier, but does it work?

What a builder would describe as "more fatty", slides off the trowel 
better etc. How does it work - I would guess by altering the surface 
tension of the water - making it wet surfaces better.

> 'Minimises cracking and crazing'
> 
> Got that one!
> 
> 'Reduces water to cement ratio'
> 
> Why would that be a benefit?

Drier mixes shrink less on curing, and "Enough" water tends to get a 
slightly stronger mix than too much. With the plasticiser you can get a 
drier mix to behave in a way that you want.

> The stuffs not expensive but overall is it worth using & does it work?

IME, yes (assuming you are using a cement that does not already have 
it). The "traditional" (but far from ideal) standin is a squirt of 
washing up liquid. (it weakens the mix among other things)

-- 
Cheers,

John.

/=================================================================\
|          Internode Ltd -  http://www.internode.co.uk            |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
|        John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk              |
\=================================================================/

John Rumm wrote:
> The "traditional" (but far from ideal) standin is a squirt of
> washing up liquid. (it weakens the mix among other things)
> 

As with all surfactants, an excess is counter productive and a "squirt" 
is probably enough to do a 50kg mix. Because there's no emulsifying to 
be done, it's basically the wrong thing to use anyway.

The Medway Handyman wrote:

> [...]  just curious really.

http://www.pavingexpert.com/mortars.htm will probably answer most of 
your questions.

-- 
Andy

The Medway Handyman wrote:
> I was looking at the mortar additives in Wickes t'other day and read
> the label on the Mortar Plasticiser
> http://www.wickes.co.uk/Cement-Additives/Mortar-Plasticiser/invt/240669
>
> Don't really do much with mortar, replace the odd brick on a garden
> wall, that sort of thing, just curious really.
>
> It says that it;
>
> 'Removes grittiness from mortar'
>
> Not sure what that means & why it would be a benefit in practice?
>
> 'Improves workability and adhesion'
>
> Again, not sure what 'workability' means in practice.  Improved
> adhesion would make rendering small areas easier, but does it work?
>
> 'Minimises cracking and crazing'
>
> Got that one!
>
> 'Reduces water to cement ratio'
>
> Why would that be a benefit?
>
> The stuffs not expensive but overall is it worth using & does it work?

Yes it works, the most noticable thing is stop the water seperating from the 
mix, IE, if you mix just sand and cement with water, put it into a bucket 
and carry it about for a minute, you'll notice that the water has puddled on 
the surface, and by the same token, the bottom half of the mortar is now 
almost bone dry, similar to when you tap your feet on a wet beach and the 
seawater pools up, with plasticiser this doesn't happen - it keeps the water 
in situ within the mortar, and also less water is needed, resulting in a 
stronger mix and a quicker drying one

-- 
Phil L
RSRL Tipster Of The Year 2008

Phil L wrote:
> The Medway Handyman wrote:
>> I was looking at the mortar additives in Wickes t'other day and read
>> the label on the Mortar Plasticiser
>> http://www.wickes.co.uk/Cement-Additives/Mortar-Plasticiser/invt/240669
>>
>> Don't really do much with mortar, replace the odd brick on a garden
>> wall, that sort of thing, just curious really.
>>
>> It says that it;
>>
>> 'Removes grittiness from mortar'
>>
>> Not sure what that means & why it would be a benefit in practice?
>>
>> 'Improves workability and adhesion'
>>
>> Again, not sure what 'workability' means in practice.  Improved
>> adhesion would make rendering small areas easier, but does it work?
>>
>> 'Minimises cracking and crazing'
>>
>> Got that one!
>>
>> 'Reduces water to cement ratio'
>>
>> Why would that be a benefit?
>>
>> The stuffs not expensive but overall is it worth using & does it work?
> 
> Yes it works, the most noticable thing is stop the water seperating from the 
> mix, IE, if you mix just sand and cement with water, put it into a bucket 
> and carry it about for a minute, you'll notice that the water has puddled on 
> the surface, and by the same token, the bottom half of the mortar is now 
> almost bone dry, similar to when you tap your feet on a wet beach and the 
> seawater pools up, with plasticiser this doesn't happen - it keeps the water 
> in situ within the mortar, and also less water is needed, resulting in a 
> stronger mix and a quicker drying one
> 

So make Morecambe Bay safe - pour a few gallons of mortar plasticiser 
over it, allow tides to mix well. :-)

-- 
Rod

Hypothyroidism is a seriously debilitating condition with an insidious 
onset.
Although common it frequently goes undiagnosed.
<www.thyromind.info> <www.thyroiduk.org> <www.altsupportthyroid.org>