A foreman in Tucson saw me buttering a brick end and stopped the whole job to ask why

Amy Murray · 2026-10-09T21:40:05.317047+00:00

I was laying a running bond on a wall in Tucson two weeks ago and buttering the head joint like I always do. The foreman walked up and asked why I put mortar on the brick end instead of just shoving it into the bed joint. I told him that's how I was taught 15 years ago. He said buttering both the bed and the head gives you a full joint every time and stops water from sneaking in later. We cut open a 6 year old wall right after and the buttered joints were solid while the shoved ones had gaps you could poke a pencil through. So now I butter the head on every brick, even when it feels slow. Anyone else get taught one way and then switch after seeing a cutaway?

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A foreman in Tucson saw me buttering a brick end and stopped the whole job to ask why | Bricklayers - HW Forums