pat781•1mo ago

Shoutout to the old timers who still butter their own corners

I was on a job down in Frederick last week helping a buddy finish a retaining wall and I noticed the younger guys on site were using those pre-mixed corner blocks for every turn. Nothing wrong with them I guess but they just don't look right to my eye. The old guy I learned from back in 2005 would spend the extra 10 minutes cutting and buttering each corner by hand so the mortar lines matched up perfect all the way around. I swear these pre-formed corners leave these weird gaps that collect water over time. I brought it up to the foreman and he just shrugged and said it's faster. Am I just being a grump or do other people notice the difference in quality after a few seasons of weather?

3 comments

3 Comments

ross.lily1mo ago

Plus the water pooling leads to freeze-thaw cracks down the road, seen it happen.

max2231mo ago

yeah @ross.lily that freeze thaw stuff is no joke, seen it ruin a few driveways myself

morgan_king361mo ago

Man yeah @ross.lily is spot on with that freeze thaw thing. I watched a whole corner crumble on a job in Hagerstown two winters after they used those pre-made blocks. The old way takes a few more minutes but it holds up way better long term. Feels like nobody cares about that stuff anymore.