• Dry postcrete then water with a watering can and rose?

    Will flow in like dry sand but the water from top and absorbing moisture from underneath should wet it out enough for pointing.

    The risk is the whole thing is dot and dab so that there's effectively a massive void under the whole thing

  • Correct analysis of the likely problem, but postcrete is a weak and brittle mix, plus the stones have to be sieved out. This is why the karate chop method works, it forces the mix beneath the slab edges and any excess can be brushed off without staining once dryish, usually about 30 mins. Karate away until thr pointing is solid and then smooth to match the surface to the surrounding pointing with a gloved finger. The potentially of having to point a larger area does exist...

  • Thanks, any further tips will be gratefully received. I’m lining this job up for Monday (what bank holidays are made for right?), if the weather plays nicely.

  • @ColinTheBald - Thanks for the patio pointing tips. I was a bit nervous about how much was breaking up when starting knocking away old loose stuff, but it wasn’t too bad in the end. With extra mortar I’d mixed also got around to fixing a birdbath, and filled a couple of drill holes in the house pointing where silicon sealant had been used previously. That’s my first time doing anything cement-ey, and only used a tiny amount from a 25kg bag, so will be looking for all the cement jobs for a while.

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