Hello everyone. I am new here on the forum and seem to have made my first mistake on the house. 
I am going to build the basement in Leca on a concrete slab. Long story short, we started plastering stones at minus 4 degrees.
The temperature looked like this during the masonry work:
Hour1 -3 degrees
Hour2 0 degrees
Hour3 -1 degree
Hour4 -3 degrees
Since then, the temperature has fluctuated between -9 and 0 for three days now.
As you have understood, the mortar hasn't exactly set. We mixed in Maxit frost protection and naive as I was, I believed the product description. That is, it accelerates curing while protecting against frost. We mixed for minus 10 degrees. It also states that strength growth continues at sub-zero temperatures and that if the mortar does freeze, the strength growth will resume when it gets warmer. There is also a table of strength as a function of curing time in days and temperature. Finally, it states:
"The level of strength in positive temperatures is not negatively affected by Maxit Frost Protection Additive. The strength growth accelerates when the mortar thaws. Ultimately, a strength level very close to what is normally achieved without freezing can be anticipated."
I have only managed to build 3/4 of a row around the house, so I can knock everything off. I took a crowbar and pried away a Leca stone. It came off resulting in the Leca stone breaking at the corner. So the mortar already has some form of strength.
The question is: Will it continue to cure over time when it gets warmer or am I completely fried and have to knock it off and start over when it's warmer outside?
Thankful for responses from someone who has done a similar maneuver. Maxit said that you absolutely had to have everything at 5 plus degrees warm using coverage/heat. But then I don't understand why they sell a frost protection at all if it doesn't help anyway.
Thanks once again!
I am going to build the basement in Leca on a concrete slab. Long story short, we started plastering stones at minus 4 degrees.
The temperature looked like this during the masonry work:
Hour1 -3 degrees
Hour2 0 degrees
Hour3 -1 degree
Hour4 -3 degrees
Since then, the temperature has fluctuated between -9 and 0 for three days now.
As you have understood, the mortar hasn't exactly set. We mixed in Maxit frost protection and naive as I was, I believed the product description. That is, it accelerates curing while protecting against frost. We mixed for minus 10 degrees. It also states that strength growth continues at sub-zero temperatures and that if the mortar does freeze, the strength growth will resume when it gets warmer. There is also a table of strength as a function of curing time in days and temperature. Finally, it states:
"The level of strength in positive temperatures is not negatively affected by Maxit Frost Protection Additive. The strength growth accelerates when the mortar thaws. Ultimately, a strength level very close to what is normally achieved without freezing can be anticipated."
I have only managed to build 3/4 of a row around the house, so I can knock everything off. I took a crowbar and pried away a Leca stone. It came off resulting in the Leca stone breaking at the corner. So the mortar already has some form of strength.
The question is: Will it continue to cure over time when it gets warmer or am I completely fried and have to knock it off and start over when it's warmer outside?
Thankful for responses from someone who has done a similar maneuver. Maxit said that you absolutely had to have everything at 5 plus degrees warm using coverage/heat. But then I don't understand why they sell a frost protection at all if it doesn't help anyway.
Thanks once again!
Hello.
I am in the same situation but haven't started building yet.
Weeks 8-9 I will build my garage with leca blocks which will later be plastered.
How did it go for you with freezing temperatures and building?
I can't really make sense of all the different regulations that apply.
In the worst case, I'll have to rent a tent and some heater, which will probably cost quite a bit.
jejje
I am in the same situation but haven't started building yet.
Weeks 8-9 I will build my garage with leca blocks which will later be plastered.
How did it go for you with freezing temperatures and building?
I can't really make sense of all the different regulations that apply.
In the worst case, I'll have to rent a tent and some heater, which will probably cost quite a bit.
jejje
http://www.maxit.se/media/22/pdf/puts/broschyrer/putsning_vintertid.pdf
Definitely recommend that you also read the material referenced in the text.
Definitely recommend that you also read the material referenced in the text.
I brought a piece of bruk that was left over. I took it home and placed it in the warmth after 3 days in sub-zero temperatures.
Now I think it has brunnit. I cast a reference piece indoors with +20 throughout the entire curing period.
I will compare the two pieces tonight to see if there is any obvious difference in strength.
Now I think it has brunnit. I cast a reference piece indoors with +20 throughout the entire curing period.
I will compare the two pieces tonight to see if there is any obvious difference in strength.
The purpose of antifreeze is to provide protection IF it freezes, despite other measures. You need to keep everything (materials, mortar, slab, etc.) above the freezing point and mix mortar with warm water, etc.
It is possible to do masonry work at sub-zero temperatures, but it is a bit tricky...
/N
It is possible to do masonry work at sub-zero temperatures, but it is a bit tricky...
/N
Now I have some data
I brought in a piece of mortar as I mentioned. It had been "frozen" at -10 degrees with frost protection for -10. For about two days after laying the bricks. I brought it in and placed it in the warmth, and it has hardened remarkably. So the "freezing" does not seem to have affected the mortar in any way.
The stones I laid and which have undergone the same treatment with the cold have cured nicely now when it was +2 for a few days. They have also cured in subzero temperatures each day, but there was a big difference with the above-zero temperatures.
I have also laid new bricks at +2 degrees with mortar with frost protection for -10. It cures beautifully in 2 hours when you work with it. The frost protection accelerates the whole process.
In short, it worked well to freeze the mortar
However, I have cover from now on, I had to humble myself and ask the neighbor for electricity so I could have some heat fans on with coverage.
My conclusion is that the frost protection actually works, both as frost protection and as an accelerator so that it cures even in cold temperatures. However, it takes time! So I will cover in the future so I know that the stones are stable when I come back the second day to continue.
But if you can build half the house at a time, you can lay a few rows on one half, let it cure for two or three days while laying a few rows on the other side.
I brought in a piece of mortar as I mentioned. It had been "frozen" at -10 degrees with frost protection for -10. For about two days after laying the bricks. I brought it in and placed it in the warmth, and it has hardened remarkably. So the "freezing" does not seem to have affected the mortar in any way.
The stones I laid and which have undergone the same treatment with the cold have cured nicely now when it was +2 for a few days. They have also cured in subzero temperatures each day, but there was a big difference with the above-zero temperatures.
I have also laid new bricks at +2 degrees with mortar with frost protection for -10. It cures beautifully in 2 hours when you work with it. The frost protection accelerates the whole process.
In short, it worked well to freeze the mortar
However, I have cover from now on, I had to humble myself and ask the neighbor for electricity so I could have some heat fans on with coverage.
My conclusion is that the frost protection actually works, both as frost protection and as an accelerator so that it cures even in cold temperatures. However, it takes time! So I will cover in the future so I know that the stones are stable when I come back the second day to continue.
But if you can build half the house at a time, you can lay a few rows on one half, let it cure for two or three days while laying a few rows on the other side.