A question about mortar

[TreasuredMim]

Need to replace the mortar between about ten old bricks on some steps at front of our house. The mortar on the other bricks is fine and doesn't need replacing.

Seems like a simple job as ready mixed mortar is easily available. But all I can find is grey mortar! The mortar on the surrounding bricks is well, mortar coloured. A sort of grubby beige colour and looks fine with the old bricks. Certainly don't want grey mortar. But where can I buy grubby beige/ neutral /ordinary coloured mortar. Anyone?

Add some lime to lighten it up might help. Colour matching mortar is not easy, depends on the colour of the sand and also any additives eg lime and even dyes.

how old is the house?

can you scratch the old mortar with a fingernail?

photos will help

It's possible to get yellowish sand, or orange

but your old mortar might be lime (not cement).

House is 1930s but these bricks were laid about 20 years ago. Bricks are an egding to steps which are impressed concrete. Ideally would want to replace all the mortar between all the bricks as it's disintegrating and can be scraped with a fingernail.

Picture attached shows where we've used grey mortar and it looks a mess and doesn't match the bricks.

It might be easier (and cheaper) to mix some yourself.

You need building sand (yellow sand), and a bag of cement. Use a 4 to one mix , 4 sand and one cement. Mix with water.

That should give you the colour you need.

the grey pointing in the pic contains too high a proportion of cement.

That’s right 👆🏼 It looks like they have just used pure cement !!!!!

I've found different manufacturers make slightly different premixed cement-based mortars, if that's what you're using. (The premixed powder they sell in bags as 'all purpose mortar' where you just add water, that is). e.g., Lafarge is greyer, Hanson is browner. You can mix your own, but you'd need to get the proportions of cement/sand right, not easy to do if you just want a small amount. And remember the old mortar will be weathered (polite way of saying, 'grubby' ), so you may not want to match exactly to it as it is now. Friends of mine had an extension built on an old property- it was suggested to them that they smeared yoghurt on the mortar once it was dry, and it blended in quickly- but I'm not sure if there are drawbacks to that- pigletjohn may know?

Drawbacks to smearing yoghurt on are it's a waste of expensive yoghurt, that your neighbours will start avoiding you as you behave strangely and also your house might stink! I've heard of rubbing dirt/soil or even tea bags etc on things to make them look older, but never yoghurt.

Very helpful advice - thanks all - might avoid the yoghurt

Yogurt was a method for getting moss to grow on cement/brick back in the 1970s. I don’t think that’s a good idea on steps.
Dirt works from personal experience. So does a jar of coffee …. Don’t ask.

I have used this. Expensive but about the only ready mixed beige I could find
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/402438383679