# How to cap off 8" concrete block wall



## Michaeljp86 (Apr 10, 2007)

Ive never done this before so not sure whats out there for it. At a apartment building the front wall of the building is up above the roof by about 3'. It has a shed roof on it, its like the old building you see on the main street in old towns where it has just a flat wall on the front. 

The problem is the building has some kind of mexican look, has some concrete arches and alot us stupid stuff up there that is crumbling and needs to go.

I want to flatten the top of that wall out and take 1 row of block off the top. Ill have to cap the top of it with something. Anyone have a good idea on what to use? Ill try to get a pic of the place up.


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## Tom R (Jun 1, 2004)

Sounds like a parapet wall and all depends on what look you/and the customer are trying to achieve.

12" wide slabs of stone sound nice to me, - - and also alternating the height sounds even better.


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## rbsremodeling (Nov 12, 2007)

Tom R said:


> Sounds like a parapet wall and all depends on what look you/and the customer are trying to achieve.
> 
> 12" wide slabs of stone sound nice to me, - - and also alternating the height sounds even better.



I thought parapet wall as well but his description is throwing me off a bit. I think its something else because he said *front wall*


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## Tom R (Jun 1, 2004)

Front wall, side wall, rear wall, - - no difference that I ever heard of . . . 


a quick search finds this . . . 

http://www.masonryconstruction.com/industry-news.asp?sectionID=1398&articleID=465282


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## Michaeljp86 (Apr 10, 2007)

I think it is called a parapet wall, its about 3' above the roof, its only the fron wall of the building.


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## rbsremodeling (Nov 12, 2007)

Tom R said:


> Front wall, side wall, rear wall, - - no difference that I ever heard of . . .
> 
> 
> a quick search finds this . . .
> ...


I stand corrected. They only refer to side walls as parapet walls here. Because buildings are on the sides an the object is to prevent fire etc, from spreading to the adjacent buildings. But that is what the building departments here refer to parapets walls here and that is normally their function. I learned something today:thumbsup:


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## Snow Man (Aug 18, 2008)

budget , budget , budget ?/?/?


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## Teetorbilt (Feb 12, 2004)

In another place and time we'd seat booze bottles in mortar and then come back later and bust off the tops with a chain. :whistling

Seriously, you want to try to match the wall to the building. For a south western/spanish look a simple rounded concrete cap might suffice. With a barrel tile roof on the house, barrel tiles on top of the wall look good, expensive but good.


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## rbsremodeling (Nov 12, 2007)

Teetorbilt;498901[B said:


> ]In another place and time we'd seat booze bottles in mortar and then come back later and bust off the tops with a chain[/B]. :whistling
> 
> Seriously, you want to try to match the wall to the building. For a south western/spanish look a simple rounded concrete cap might suffice. With a barrel tile roof on the house, barrel tiles on top of the wall look good, expensive but good.


They still do that here. It keeps the neighborhood thugs from coming on the roof and breaking in through the roof's access panel. along with the adt wireless sensor of course


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## Railman (Jan 19, 2008)

In your area, the reason it's probably crumbling is due to constant freeze/thaw cycles, as do we south of you in Cincinnati.
I recently went through something similar on my shop that I bought a few years ago. It was built with 12" block with 3' or so high wall above the roof around the perimeter, with 4x16 solid caps. After many freeze thaw cycles, the cap developed cracks in the cap, & caused all sorts of leaks. I reset, & trimmed some of the caps, & then braked an aluminum cap from .032? x 24" alum coil stock, & installed with 1/4" fasteners & adequate urethane caulk at the seams. I made the lths in the ball park of 10 depending on the lentgth of the runs. It looks good, & solved all of the leak problems.
Joe


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## rbsremodeling (Nov 12, 2007)

Michaeljp86 said:


> Ive never done this before so not sure whats out there for it. At a apartment building the front wall of the building is up above the roof by about 3'. It has a shed roof on it, its like the old building you see on the main street in old towns where it has just a flat wall on the front.
> 
> The problem is the building has some kind of mexican look, has some concrete arches and alot us stupid stuff up there that is crumbling and needs to go.
> 
> I want to flatten the top of that wall out and take 1 row of block off the top. Ill have to cap the top of it with something. Anyone have a good idea on what to use? Ill try to get a pic of the place up.


Back to the original post, Here we use metal capping/flashing


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## Snow Man (Aug 18, 2008)

Teetorbilt said:


> In another place and time we'd seat booze bottles in mortar and then come back later and bust off the tops with a chain. :whistling
> 
> Seriously, you want to try to match the wall to the building. For a south western/spanish look a simple rounded concrete cap might suffice. With a barrel tile roof on the house, barrel tiles on top of the wall look good, expensive but good.


 in english that would mean help me , he is the fella in home dumpster asking a min. wage helper where the lubricating jelly isle is located. . lmfao:w00t:


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## Michaeljp86 (Apr 10, 2007)

Snow Man said:


> budget , budget , budget ?/?/?


Its my dads building so CHEAP. :laughing:

We want to loose the mexico look and cap it with something green. the building has a 42" metal waynes scotting around the bottom so that will be green too and the rest of the building beige.


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## Teetorbilt (Feb 12, 2004)

Another idea, planter boxes filled with whatever your local low maintenance flora is.


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## Tom R (Jun 1, 2004)

Michaeljp86 said:


> Its my dads building so CHEAP. :laughing:


:laughing:



> We want to loose the mexico look and cap it with something green. the building has a 42" metal _*waynes scotting*_ around the bottom so that will be green too and the rest of the building beige.


Boy, did you butcher that one. I believe it would be w-a-i-n-s-c-o-t-i-n-g, - - all one word (and sometimes spelled with two t's). Not trying to criticize you, - - just for your info . . . :thumbsup:


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## genecarp (Mar 16, 2008)

CONCRETE 12''x 2''x 3' pourem then installem


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## Cdat (Apr 18, 2007)

genecarp said:


> CONCRETE 12''x 2''x 3' pourem then installem


WTF, are you doing here? Shouldn't you be getting drunk or something meaningful?


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## genecarp (Mar 16, 2008)

Cdat said:


> WTF, are you doing here? Shouldn't you be getting drunk or something meaningful?


my troops will be rolling in any minute for the last 4 hr push. just i few minutes of relaxing and chatting about the business that i just cant seem to get enough of.:thumbup: 100 people showing up at 2pm, it should be interesting!!!!!!


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## rbsremodeling (Nov 12, 2007)

genecarp said:


> my troops will be rolling in any minute for the last 4 hr push. just i few minutes of relaxing and chatting about the business that i just cant seem to get enough of.:thumbup: 100 people showing up at 2pm, it should be interesting!!!!!!


Gene I totally understand. This place is like therapy for me. I thought I was strange and out there. I realize it's just a contractor thing:thumbsup:


Congrats and I hope it last forever and enjoy the cruise.


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