The usual figure is a tonne of sand per thousand bricks, which is a reasonable rule of thumb and nothing more. This derives the mortar volume from your actual unit size and joint width, then splits it by your mix — and shows every step.
Enter the wall area, then the bare unit size — not the coordinating size — and the joint width.
Works in metric and US imperial — you choose at the start and can switch at any time. Every figure this calculator uses is published with its source, and the result comes with a printable order sheet. No account, no email, and nothing you type leaves your browser.
Related: Brick calculator · Block calculator · Sand calculator
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The usual figure is a tonne of sand per thousand bricks, which is a reasonable rule of thumb and nothing more. This works from your actual unit size and joint width to derive the mortar volume, then splits it into sand and cement at the ratio you choose. Enter the bare unit size here, not the coordinating size — the joint is what we are calculating, so it cannot also be built into the input.
Not a preference. 4:1 for exposed work and anything below DPC; 5:1 or 6:1 for general walling above ground. Too strong a mortar is worse than too weak: a hard mortar will not accommodate movement, so the bricks crack instead of the joints, and repointing a wall is far easier than replacing its faces. Use building or soft sand, not sharp sand — it is graded to be workable under a trowel.
Mix only what you can use in about two hours. Mortar starts to set and cannot be brought back with more water; knocking up a stiffened mix ruins its strength. Do not lay below about 3 °C or in the rain, and cover unfinished work overnight — mortar that freezes before it sets is permanently weak, and rain washes cement out of green joints. Order the sand in one delivery too: sand colour varies between loads and mortar colour follows the sand, so a wall built from two deliveries can show a horizontal band that never fades.
4:1 sand to cement for exposed work and anything below DPC; 5:1 or 6:1 for general walling above ground. Treat it as a specification rather than a preference — too strong a mortar is worse than too weak, because a hard mortar makes the bricks crack instead of the joints.
About a tonne, as a rule of thumb. This calculator does better by working from your actual unit size and joint width, because a wide joint or an unusual unit changes the figure significantly.
No. Use building or soft sand, which is graded to be workable under a trowel. Sharp sand is for concrete and screeds — the same difference in grading that makes it right there makes it wrong here.
About two hours. It starts to set and cannot be brought back by adding water — knocking up a stiffened mix ruins its strength. Mix in batches you can actually lay.