You have two options when it comes to mixing mortar at site. You can either mix it using separate ingredients that are stored in the site or you can order pre-blended mortar that will come already mixed to the site. The latter option is actually a more convenient option.
When you are mixing mortar at site
You will need to mix sand and cementitious elements according to a proportion inside a mixer. And this mixing has to be done in batches when it comes to a large construction project. But having to mix in batches comes with the risk of not having the same proportion each time. There will be slight changes as per human error. Nowadays, there are more stringent standards and specifications for mixing mortar and technology has advanced in a way that we can be more accurate. Mixing mortar on site is very labour intensive as there is a lot of lifting and shovelling to be done. The workers will have to lift sand, lime and cement from their respective places and bring them to one area to mix. And there is a lot of shovelling that has to be done to ensure everything has been mixed properly. When you have pre-blended mortar, you can avoid this labour.
The main benefit of using pre-blended mortar is that you are able to maintain a high quality. Most of the time, when blending on-site, there will be contamination due to the way that aggregates are stored. Sand is usually dumped on the ground by the truck and many of these items will be stored outside where they are open to the elements. You don’t need to worry about contamination when you have properly packed pre-blended mortar. And inside the pack, the sand will be at optimum condition whereas sand on site the sand will have some wetness either due to humidity or being out in the rain. And when you are working with wet sand, it can be very difficult to determine how much water is required. And there can be many chemical contaminants in the sand. These contaminants can affect the strength of the mortar. The great thing about pre-blended mortar is that there is no guesswork. You can manage the mortar more effectively and achieve a more predictable result as per building standards.
The conditions of all ingredients
In pre-blended mortar are monitored carefully to ensure that they meet the relevant standards. All conditions are controlled and there is more precision in the blending. Also, all components are kept separate from each other. For example, cement will be stored separately from the sand and from lime. These conditions are very difficult to replicate on a construction site. There are also computers used to ensure that the quality of the mortar is controlled precisely. The blending is monitored by a computer and they are carefully packaged once the components are fully blended. You can also purchase the pre-blended mortar in bulk quantities depending on the scale of the project.
