Becoming a Dry Stone Mason - Interview with Tracey Blackwell DSWA Certified Advanced Level from West Yorkshire UK

Workshops - Rockin Walls - Fall 2014

FALL 2014 
Rockin Walls University - hosting beginner level workshops. Intermediate levels to come 2015.

See our Dry Stone Workshops Page for more details. 

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Tool - Pin Lewis, Lifting Stones

Another great tool learned about at the Dry Stone Conservancy - Shaping workshop 2012 was the Pin Lewis.



Pins are placed into drilled holes at 45 degree. Holes should be the size of the pins with no slop. Then you connect a chain to them for lifting.

A machine can now lift and place stones with ease.


To order a set  check out  Trow and Holden

Factory Recommendations:

“... the listed size of the pin lewis (eg. 7/8”) should be the hole size drilled to receive the pins. The pins are slightly undersize to fit in a standard hole – there should be no “slop” nor should it be necessary to drill an oversize hole to accommodate the pin.

“...should also be aware that a worn or incorrectly ground drill will often result in an undersized or misshapen hole. Using a new drill bit is recommended.”

“It is also important that the holes be drilled to a minimum depth to receive the full pin length (eg. a 7/8” pin lewis would need a 5” minimum depth hole). The full pin length must be fully set in the hole before any lifting is attempted.”

Trow and Holden Co.

How To - Tie Rocks / Through - Stones

Ties Rocks or Through Stone are the same thing.  I'll call them ties. When building a freestanding walls or retaining walls it is very important to build with ties. Tie stones helping make a wall structurally sound. Ties stones are used to help tie the front and back of the wall together. Over time the wall will settle along with rise with frost heaves making it a flexible system. The ties will keep the wall from bulging outward by lock it together.

Illustration/spec sheet provided by the Dry Stone Conservancy USA.

This is the specs for 2011 DSC competition of a historical wall at Shaker Village KY. Most walls at this site are 36" high with 12" of vertical coping stones. Ties are placed at 18" up - level, spaced out 36" on center, protruding on both sides 2-3". 

2011 Dry Stone Conservancy DSC 8th Annual event at Shaker Village in KY. This wall section only had ties placed flush on this side but protruding on parking lot side. Set on level at 17" from grade. 

This was a the Warren Road retaining wall project at the first row of tie stones placed 36" on center. The original wall did not have them. Nor was the original wall 4' wide at the base. These ties were placed at 22" up. This wall did not have any stones to act as ties. I purchased PA Blue stone in order to add them into the wall. Not all walls will have ties. Some areas which are historical may not have used ties. Some areas do not have stone adequate as ties. Some stone may not work with ties such as rubble. Some walling styles just don't use them such as in areas of Carven district of Yorkshire*. If your working with stones you can layer and creating a double wall then you should be building with tie stones. 

When possible you should always use the larges stones you have for ties - of course within reason. You want to be able to lift them with at least one or two people. You should always pack underneath of them making sure every thing is tight. My ties above I used a level to help insure they were level front to back. (this day was raining so I just happen to keep both levels on this tie under the tent-no other reason to check it twice..ha ha) Make sure just like any stone you cover your joints below. If you don't happen to have tie stones long enough for the job you can use two long stones to help run past each other. But I would advise before you consider this read up more by purchasing the DRY STONE WALLING - a practical handbook. If you don't own this book and you enjoy walling or you consider yourself a professional. You should add this to your collection! A over whelming amount of content.

This is the upper row of tie stones 3' long - tie back into the bank on the Warren Road Project.

 

Notice tie stone protruding and set level. With walls over 48" it would be suggest to use additional ties set at half way points. On this wall which was 7' with flat caps I did 2 rows of ties placed at 22" up. My tie stones I used were 2" thick. The Dry Stone Conservancy DSC suggests walls 36"- 48" tall use one row of ties half way up. Walls 48"-60" use two rows at equal height. Walls less then this ties would not be necessary. But you could stager or place them random if you had a great deal of longer stones. This will only strengthen the wall.

In this picture above the red dots show all the tie stones as recommended by the Dry Stone Conservancy DSC to be staggered or centered above the lower row.  

Tie stones are a key ingredient to make a structurally sound wall. Note: In United Kingdom not all walls use this building practice. In the USA this was very commonly found in all historic stone fences in Kentucky built by the Scottish, Irish and English immigrants. These historic walls over 100 years still stand today! Some of the walls even had ties stones which staggered through out the wall in random placement. 

I believe historical structures show us the value of "Sound" construction without a Civil/Engineer telling you other wise in the USA. The lack of education and awareness is alarming in the United States when it comes to dry laid stone construction or walls built without mortar. 

Dry Laid Stone Construction which fails is most likely due to improper building. Not following the key building rules will add to accelerated failure. 

• Covering joints

• Length into the wall

• Pack the wall from the inside

• Lay stones level

 *Reference : DRY STONE WALLING - a practical handbook.

Masterclass - Through Stones by Sean Adcock

Reproduced by kind permission of the author Sean Adcock - member@stonewaller.freeserve.co.uk

MC Through Stones Summer 07

Testing / Tool List- level 1

Preparation: Level 1 testing (DSC)

Lay out rock sorted into function

Keep all hearting/infill within 24” of wall

Lay out rock similar to the way it comes off the old wall – especially near bottom

Copping stones are the furthest away when sorted

Lay coping stones out in the order they came off the wall

Make sure you have good tie stones available and set aside

Look through “new stone” for potential ties and copes or good foundation stones

You can even set these aside before the competition starts!


Building:

Leave 18” of clear space between wall foundation and rocks

Tie your own strings to the batter frames provided

Foundation – up and out by 4” ( Any protruding foundation measurements refer to Specification Sheet supplied on the day  of the competition. Normally 2 inch either side but check spec. )

Build a foundation that looks like a PATIO – extra points!

Try to place tie-in stones (to your neighbor) before they do

Place tie-in stones so that you zipper past the  line that is between you and  your neighbor

If you get ahead of you neighbor - keep building up and it is their responsibility to mesh with your zipper

Cover stones below copes at Shaker Village KY -  always refer to spec on the day. 

When copping – follow the “random” patern of 2-1-2-1-2-1-2-1 – might need 35-40 (15-30 min to do)


General Stuff:

Neil says – for speed and efficiency – work with your shoulders perpendicular to wall

Keep your coarse work level

Don’t work stone too much – points deducted

Bigger stuff lower in the wall

Mossy side out

Work to the line but don’t touch the line (up and out)

Keep building up each side of the wall at the same time

Keep tools on top of wall so when you switch side you close to tools

Keep your hands moving constantly

If you are stuck  - Pack!

Shadows are better than loose fillers

Timing:

Get to site early and register early - (Wether or not if you arrive to register for the competition first on site or 5 minutes before the comp starts there is no way to determine what section you might get. It's called the luck of the draw on the day. I have seen the worst section on the field turn out to be the winner of the competition, it all up to the skill  of the individual.)

Tear out should be done in 30 Minutes

Tie stones should be in by lunch break


Tool List:

* Small Cooler and water container

* String

* Line Pins

*  Small Pickaxe garden tool..ect (great for digging out the little stuff on for foundation)

* Pickaxe (one year the fellow next to me had to work throw tree roots to build foundation-ya fun!)

* Rock hammer ( the basic mason / brick hammer will do the job and any other you use often)

* 2 or 6lb sledge – short handle (busting stones if needed)

Chisel (if you use them - time limited during testing suggest avoid chiseling)

* Tape Measure

* Gloves – 2 pair

* Safety glasses

Steel toed boots?

Head lamp (if you like to work in the dark)

Knee pads (if used- I find they slow me down for testing)

* Level (s) if used

* Buckets – Tubs

Grinder

Quickie saw

Large fan

Generator

Dynamite

Plastic explosives

Fuses

Gas grill

Cheer leaders

Motivational CD’s (Dan Snow)

Sherpa guides to carry all my stuff


NOTES: * = Yes  are a should have. Ha ha factor starts at Grinder and below....

This list above has been supplied by: 

Dale Mitchell
Mitchell Landscapes, LLC
WWW.MitchellLandscapes.com



Some information has been (added) or modified to help others plan for a great test day! 
DSC offers a on site port-a potti, rebar plus cross bars for top, string lines... but as a up and coming professional - I would advise you bring the needed tools you use on the day to day. If you have any questions ask the organization you are testing with. 


If your doing a special feature on site, make sure you bring your one wood for frames, rebar... go equipped and ask questions. 


DSWA level 2 notes:
I tested in spring this year. What did I some how forget? 3' or 4' level. Hard to build a cheek end (wall head) with out one. Ok maybe you can. I'm not that good. All other tools listed above. 

Book - Dry Stone Walling

DRY STONE WALLING - a practical handbook

ISBN 0-946752-19-2

This is one of the most important books one could consider buying. If you want to learn dry stone walling. I consider this to be the Wikipedia of how to .... you can find this on Amazon. Retails for $45 The Dry Stone Walling is the British handbook for walling. The begin can be a little slow going since it covers geographical areas not shown on any map. Very detailed with images, content, definitions, history and stone. 

If you don't own this book - you should! I recommend this to new/old wallers, architects, engineers, landscapers, homeowners, quarries, stone yards and any one who loves stone.

UK Orders Click BTCV

Consider this when hiring a Dry Stone Mason!

If you plan on hiring a Dry Stone Mason, take the time to see their work. Understand what they do. How they have been trained. Do they hold any qualified certification from DSC or DSWA? Ask for referrals. Understand what good walling looks like. Just because someone is a mason who may work with mortar, they may not understand how to properly build a dry stone wall. 

Most businesses will be happy to take your money and say Yes we can do that. Remember also dry stone doesn't mean dry stone look or mortar should be used. Dry Stone walls are built with out mortar. Only on rare occasions mortar may be needed for a special application.

I've taken the steps to learn correct walling, I follow key rules and build to the level of my training, always pushing to be greater. In 2006 I built one of my first walls. (pictured above) I had never built a wall before of this size. This was recycled Butler stone a friend had given me and my wife. In 8 hours I put this together. I had only read books but never taken a workshop. Running joints in more then a few places. Weed cloth on the bottom- a no no. Simply not needed since your stones should sit right on the earth.

Some of the other things at the time I did not think of was the undercut of the stone. If you look hard at some of the stone you will see more then a few which are not working with the batter of the wall. So instead of tapering back some actually stick out due to the shape. I also did not use any string lines or frames - I had no idea what they were at the time. In 2007 I would learn the basics from the DSC in KY with master craftsman Neil Rippingale. Seen below workshop in Shaker village KY.

Moral of the story- don't let any fast talking "Professional Stone Mason" tell you how qualified he or she is. The internet is a big place - do your homework - check credentials, inspect work. Ask questions. Last but least do they build it or do they have a crew of men who do the work. Sometimes a one man show will be slower but the quality of work will be correct with a skilled craftsman.

For more information about correct dry stone walling check out Dry Stone Principles. The DSWA of Great Britain offers some great leaflets on proper dry stone walling. 

A MUST READ: Book - StoneWork, Standards & Common Faults, by SEan Adcock

Responsible Walling-Site Safety

Site Safety is about the areas we work. If not careful, one could easily look over the smallest but most important issues when walling. Being responsible is key. Recently I watched a great video I was surprised to see so much heavy equipment being used on the job site over peoples heads. But 1 out of a hand full had a hard hat. If OSHA walked on the site this job/workshop would have been shut down and possibly fined. It could have been an oversight, laziness, ignorance, convenience factor who knows. The reality is if some one or something gets injured or killed, now you have bigger issues on your hands. It doesn't take long to set up. When you're plan and pricing your jobs be sure to consider safety. Once you start your job set out to put safety procedure into place. On a job I worked every morning meeting safety was reviewed. You should also check your state laws. Simple common sense can go a long way. As we all know cut corners can quickly result in accidents.

This was held in VA. The city was so happy to have this work done. They hired a road crew to direct traffic. All the participants were required to wear reflective vests and eye protection on the job at all times

This was a wall I was working on. The reason for cones are boarders horses walk past this site in order to get to the barn. If a horse spooks they could easily get hurt very quickly with all the stones laying on the ground. Also if you notice to the right at this end of the wall you will see the stake with pink tape and a protective cap. On the left side the orange cone covers the same stake. I have worked on several job sites with contractors and I'm always surprised when I hear what are those for? Man slip or trip on a stone you'll see real quick! Even the long rebar holding up the frames have been looped for safety and taped with hot pink for visibility in low light.

This was at Shaker Village KY. Notice the site has over head protection from the elements keeping the work area about 10-15 degrees cooler. The tent is tied down in the corners for overnight protection. Normally on jobs DSC always pulls down their canopies at the end of the day. The walk space around the wall as seen in both photos above is very important. You should keep a minimum of 18 inches clear. This will keep anyone from tripping on stones. Since Shaker Village is a tourist site caution tape was place around the outside area. Keeping spectators away from swinging hammers and ground stones. 

This example of job site at Wyman Park Baltimore MD. You will notice the orange fence to the right. This was set up by the contractor to protect the work areas. The walk space is live all day long for passersby so all stone stayed on the pallets as we worked. Stone from the old wall was kept close to the new build. At the end of the day any loose or empty pallets were removed. The walk alway kept clear. The wall was covered with plastic to avoid removal of frames or stones while in progress. You will also notice to the left a plywood board to protect the tree(s) from the mini excavator which was removing the old wall.

Taking small steps will make for better Site Safety.

Video - Dry Stone Principles

How To Build A Dry Stone Wall

Four Basic Principles
1) Length running into the wall
2) Cover the joints
3) Pack from the inside
4) Lay stones level


Five Golden Rules:
1) Lay one stone and pack it.
2) Lay five stones, stand back and look.
3) Build to the line, not above it.
4) Move lines up according to height of stone.
5) Don't hammer on the wall.

If you have never had the chance to take a workshop you should! You can be a first timer or an experienced stone mason. Workshops are a great way to continue to educate yourself or your crews. It's never too late to learn.

Learn the 4 basic principles and the 5 golden rules of dry stone. Hand signs created and shown by Dale Mitchell (Mitchell Landscapes, LLC NC) . To learn more about up coming workshops visit The Stone Trust.