How to fix an external brick wall that has been completed from the inside?

[mmclachlan]

How to fix an external brick wall of the garage that has been completed from the inside due to it being on a zero boundary and the fence being put up first?  Once I take the fence down and get on the neighbour's land I want to waterproof and fix up the wall so I can have a return on the wall.  The mortar is a mess with heaps of gaps.  The excess mortar has been loosely removed but it still needs a lot of work.  Do you fill in the mortar holes first then use some sort of waterproof sealant then render?

[EricL]

Hello @mmclachlan 

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community. It's wonderful to have you join us and thanks for sharing your question about your brick wall.

Would it be possible for you to post a picture of the brick wall? This will give our members a chance to assess its condition. We can then make recommendations on how to proceed.

Generally speaking, if you are rendering the wall, there would be no need to fix the mortar as the gaps will be filled with render. Once the render cures you can then apply a water proofing agent of your choice. What's important is that it is certified for external use. 

Here is a handy step-by-step guide: How to render.

If you need a hand posting the photos, please let me know.

Eric

[mmclachlan]

Thanks so much Eric.  

Unfortunately the fence has got closer over time and we'll need to remove it so the pictures are not great.  I've attached some.  

[MitchellMc]

Hi @mmclachlan,

Are you experiencing moisture issues on the wall's interior, and that's why you need to waterproof it? Are you planning on rendering just to make the wall look nicer? 

Eric's advice is on the money and the wall should be repaired, render applied and waterproofing done over that. The render won't stick to the wall if you waterproof it first.

Please let us know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

[mmclachlan]

Thanks Mitchell.

No real issues with water problems on the internal wall that we have seen.  We'll be removing the fence permanently as the neighbour's trees dump heaps of leaves which end up between the fence and the wall thereby breaching the termite barrier and we can't get them out.  So it will be the ugly brick face where rendering will make it look better.  Also the that side cops the storm rain and again the neighbour has completely rusted gutters and downpipes so we get all the storm water along that side, hence the waterproofing.  The waterproofing could be done just down the lower part but I'm not sure how that would work.

Thanks again.

[EricL]

Hello @mmclachlan 

Thanks for sharing those photos of the brick wall. To protect yourself from future flooding and water ingress, I still suggest rendering the wall to give it a nice finish and then covering the entire surface with a water proofing agent. There are a number of choices, my best advice is to just make sure that the waterproofing agent you choose is rated for external use.

Please remember to give the render enough time to cure, if the waterproofing membrane is applied too early trapped moisture will ruin the sealer and will peel off.

If you have any other questions we can help with, please let us know.

Eric