| Masonry Mailbox |
| A masonry apprentice gets his wings working on a concrete-core mailbox. |
From "Trade School"
episode DTRS-201 |
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(Continued from page )
To fortify the mailbox core, Tony presses four rebar sections into the pour to a depth of eight inches. He makes sure to space the bars (figure E) so that they line up with the cells of the concrete blocks that make up the core. He uses the level to ensure each bar is perfectly plumb. The base is allowed to dry overnight.To create the core, Tony stacks alternating courses of two concrete blocks. Using a trowel, he sets each course with a line of mortar (figure F) comprised of Portland cement, which contains hydrated lime and sand. As he lays each block on the mortar, he taps them down with a mallet (figure G) and checks for level. He also uses the level to ensure each side is plumb as he sets each course. Tony inserts a wall tie to each side of the block on each course. Later in the project, they will be bent into the stone façade to tie into the core.
Once the desired height of the mailbox is reached, Tony completes the core by filling the blocks of cells with the Portland cement mixture (figure H). The core is allowed to set up overnight before the sandstone exterior is applied.Tony now builds the sandstone exterior around the core. When necessary, he uses a hammer and chisel to shape. He scores all around the stone in the pattern that he needs, then he continues to work around the stone chiseling until the stone breaks off (figure I). If this is done correctly, the stone should break along the scoring. Applying too much pressure to the top or bottom of the stone can result in it breaking off along a natural fault line.
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