Why does nobody butter the joints before repointing?

I keep watching guys slap new mortar into joints that are bone dry and dusty, then wonder why it crumbles out in a year. Last month on a 1920s row house in Philly, I sprayed and buttered every joint first, zero shrinkage cracks after two weeks. Am I the only one who does this, or is it just not taught anymore?

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phoenix_lewis15d ago

Wait, are you seriously telling me the crew on that Philly row house skipped the pre-soak entirely? I gotta ask, what did the old mortar look like when you pulled it, was it basically powder or still holding some structure, cause that changes everything about how much water you gotta hit it with. And another thing, did you use a misting bottle or just hose it down hard, cause I've seen guys saturate the wall so bad it looks like a car wash and then blame the mix when it slumps. I'm not saying buttering is magic, but if the base is bone dry it's just sucking every drop of moisture outta the new stuff before it can cure. Maybe that's the whole secret nobody talks about, the prep work is boring so they skip it.

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