Plasticiser

[Wickolad]

Hi everyone,
I'm just about to start building the dome of my 39" pompeii style WFO.
I have all the ingredients for the home brew fire mortar. My question is,
Can I add a plasticiser to the mix to improve workability?
I picked up a mortar gun, see picture hopefully, to assist in pumping the mix into the cake shaped gaps between rows. This tool requires addition of plasticiser to the mix to permit its effectiveness. I cannot find anything on the web to answer this question and thought I'd ask you guys. Thank you for your time, and all the fantastic information, builds and advice I have found through months of research on this site.
Best wishes,
Lance.

[david s]

No, you’d be wasting time and product adding it to the homebrew. Both lime and clay are sometimes added to mortars in small quantities to act as a plasticiser to make the mix more workable. In the case of homebrew the addition of both, in large quantities, already makes the mix “workable”.

[UtahBeehiver]

Take the mortar gun back. No need, the process of buttering the bricks and laying the motar bed down takes care of the gaps. If you really feel you need something like this, buy a $5 canvas grout bag.

[Wickolad]

Hi David S,
thank you so much for the speedy response and great advice. I did a small mix without as I was expecting a longer wait for a response. I'm glad it was a relatively small mix as it does seem to start firming up rapidly, even though I soaked the bricks for over a hour.
Thank you again for the sound advice all the best,
Lance

[Wickolad]

Hi UtahBeehiver,
thank you for speedy reply. I take your point with that one. Packed it away already haha.
Thank you again,
best wishes
Lance