How to attach capping stones to brick retaining wall?

[ludicrousgib]

I've got a double brick retaining wall, and I'm having trouble attaching cement coping stones to the top. I've tried cement mortar and Selleys Liquid Nails Landscape Stone Concrete Adhesive, but they keep coming loose. 

Any suggestions on how to permanently attach them?

[EricL]

Hello @ludicrousgib 

Thanks for sharing your question about your capping stones. Can you please provide us with a little bit more information in regards to the brick retaining wall. Is it painted or was a sealer applied to the brick surface? Is the brick surface currently damp? Is it dusty and crumbling or is the top of the brick rendered? It might be necessary to use the Dunlop 20kg Universal Tile Adhesive or the Davco 20kg SMP Evo Tile Adhesive. The tile glues I've suggested should provide more of a cohesive grip to the stone.

Let me call on our experienced members @Dave-1 and @Nailbag for their recommendations.

Please remember to wear personal protection such as gloves, glue and a mask. When working on your project.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric

[Dave-1]

Morning @ludicrousgib 

Im with @EricL on this one, It will make it easier with some more information.

It should be easy I have bessa blocks that have been in place for years with capping stones and they are still attached so you "will" be able to do it.

- Any chance of a photo of what the brickwork looks like without the capping stone there?

- The Underside of the new capping stone, is it sealed or porrus? (A picture would be good)

- Have you considered mortar instead of liquid nails? And that leads me to the question how much liquid nails did you use?

- How clean/level is the top of the brickwork?

Dave

[ludicrousgib]

Thanks @Dave-1 and @EricL. Here's a pic.

I think your questions have helped answer mine. Not sure what it looked like before the coping stones were originally attached, but I think it was bare bricks - you can see some of the bare brick in some spots. The brickwork now is not a clean and level surface, though. What would be the best way to go about cleaning this up and prepping before trying to attach them again? 

[Dave-1]

Morning @ludicrousgib 

hahahah yeah the lawn is reclaiming the concrete

I would pressure wash the lot (top and bottom), you will have paint flakes peeling off the bessablocks for sure so make sur enothing you like is around. I used a sheet drapped over a frame to stop the paint flakes from going further. Hit with a wire brush for anything else that is holding on. Then mortar it back inplace (the whole row of capping stones would potentially be an idea. If you are only replacing some then id measure the difference of the cleaned height against its neighbour to see what type of mortar you want. Id rather mortar over liquid nails asI feel it may be more forgiving.

Dave

[MitchellMc]

It's great to see that @Dave-1 has already provided some advice @ludicrousgib. I'd suggest scraping off the roots, scrubbing down the area to remove debris and then glueing it back on with Landscape Liquid Nails. If mortar had been used before, it certainly wasn't very thick. Adding mortar without removing the old will place this tile higher than the rest. Running a few beads of Liquid nails will hold it in place and won't change the height much.

Please let us know if you have any questions.

Mitchell