Found out the mortar joint in my 1998 build is 3/8 inch and the new spec sheet says 1/2, now I'm worried

Wendy Garcia · 2026-09-18T04:00:03.321818+00:00

I was going through old job drawings from a house I did on Maple Street back in 1998 and measured a leftover brick I kept in the truck. The joint came out to right at 3/8 inch, which was normal back then for that crew. Last week our foreman handed out a new spec sheet that calls for 1/2 inch joints on the same type of wall, and I did the math on a 10 foot run. That 1/8 inch difference adds up to over a full course of brick across the wall, which means more mortar, more time, and a different look. Anyone else seeing specs get bumped like this, or is it just the engineers in my area changing things up?

Guest Forum

Loading…

Found out the mortar joint in my 1998 build is 3/8 inch and the new spec sheet says 1/2, now I'm worried | Bricklayers - Guest Forum