In terms of DIY, bricklaying is considered to be one of the more adopted tasks. Many homeowners are keen to give the craft a go, but it isn’t a job that should be taken on lightly. If you want to build a secure wall you will need to follow certain guidelines. The following is step-by-step guide in how to build the perfect brick wall.

Step 1
After preparing your foundations, lay out the bricks you plan to use at where the wall will start and end. Then use a string line to create a straight guideline between the two.

Step 2
At a five to one ratio, mix cement and sand together until it becomes one consistent colour. Then form a central hollow on an old board, pour in water and continue to blend until it is a smooth texture that still has a thick consistently.

Step 3
Put down a 1cm to 2cm mortar along the set-up string line. Start at one end, lay the initial brick and tap it in to ‘bed it’. Prepare the next brick and adjoin it to the one you previously laid, repeat this process all the way down, using the string line as your guide.

DIY guide. A Step by Step Guide to Building a Brick WallStep 4
Where you want to create the wall’s pillars, place a brick side onto to what will be the end of the wall. And as the wall starts to take shape, each course of bricks should be laid in exactly the opposite direction of its parallel pillar.

Step 5
When you are building pillars, you will need to utilise half-bricks at some point. Cut a brick in two by placing it on its side, locating the bolster split point and hit it hard with the face of a hammer. Then it should split quite cleanly and clearly the first time via this method.

Step 6
Build the pillars higher than the actual wall; by moving the string guideline up higher the more you build. Pillars should always be at least a course higher that the rest of the wall.

Step 7
Vertical mortars should always be 10mm thick or more. Standard bricks should be given a little more room, as there should be around 75mm from the one at the top to the one that is below. If your bricks are soaking up moisture faster than you expected, then take a special look at step 10 and ‘joint up’ the bricks as you go along.

A Step by Step Guide to Building a Brick Wall2Step 8
As soon as you reach the top of each pillar, it is advised that you use a coping stone to cap it off. If your budget can’t stretch to it, then you can create a similar look by bedding the bricks into the mortar vertically. It may not be the most practical option, but it is cost effective.

Step 9
In order to help maintain the quality of a wall, it might be worth adding a ‘solider course’. It is an attractive option and can help preserve the main part of a garden based wall. Simply turn the bricks in a vertical direction and lay them along the full length of the wall, once again use a string line to help keep the finish straight and steady.

Step 10
Finish the beds by using a rounded edge of a brick joiner in order to rub mortar into the joints. You should start doing this by attending to the horizontal lines, before following up with the vertical lines, as it will be easy to remove any excess via this method.

Step 11
The last and final step is to brush down the wall and that is still around the wall perimeter. Use water to wash away any excess cement and what you should have left is a fully functional wall.