Role guide · Bricklayer
Brickwork grinds kit down like no other trade: block texture eats gloves, mortar eats skin, and the scaffold is the most weather-exposed workplace on site. The list below is chosen for attrition.
The list
| Item | Spec | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Gloves | Coated, EN 388 abrasion 4, boxed | Block texture strips level-3 gloves in days |
| Trousers | Heavy or ripstop, EN 14404 knees | DPC and kerb courses are knee-height work |
| Tee + sweat + hi-vis | Layered per the site system | Scaffold weather changes by the hour |
| Waterproofs | EN 343 jacket, bib trousers for the worst | Rain stops brickwork late — you'll be out in plenty |
| Boots | S3, scuff cap worth having | Blocks land where they land; toe scuffing is constant |
| Eye protection | EN 166 F for cutting & chasing | Disc-cut brick throws hot grit |
| FFP3 mask | Any dry cutting | Brick and block dust is silica dust |
The quiet hazard
Wet mortar is strongly alkaline, and its burns are insidious: prolonged skin contact — mortar in a glove, kneeling in fresh muck, a boot full of it — causes chemical burns that don't sting until the damage is done. The kit answers: gloves that keep mortar out (gauntlet cuffs for mixing), waterproof knee protection on fresh-mortar work rather than trousers soaking through, rinsing splashes off skin promptly, and never finishing a day in mortar-soaked clothing. It's the trade's version of the wet-concrete rule.
The other constant is silica: dry-cutting brick, block and stone is FFP3-and-extraction territory, no exceptions — the FFP guide carries the warning in full.
Details
Questions
Coated gloves at EN 388 abrasion level 4, bought boxed — block and brick texture destroys lighter gloves in days. For mixing and heavy mortar contact, gauntlet-cuff styles keep the caustic material off wrists and out of the glove.
Yes — mortar and concrete are strongly alkaline, and prolonged contact causes chemical burns that develop painlessly. Keep mortar out of gloves and boots, rinse splashes promptly, use waterproof knee protection on fresh work, and never work on in soaked clothing.
For any dry cutting or chasing of brick, block or stone — yes, FFP3, because masonry dust is respirable crystalline silica. Wet cutting and on-tool extraction are the primary controls; the mask backs them up.
Everything on the list is stocked and embroiderable — one order, one account.