Synthetic chinking versus mortar chinking

[Ellsworth]

Can you imagine how much time a person saves using synthetic chinking?

I'm trying to wrap my head around the theoretical math.

Mortar chinking:

Shove in backer rod / insulation.
Hammer in a 'few' nails.
Order sand, lime, get a mixer, hawk, trowels, cleaning supplies, spray bottles, sponges, et cetera.
Mix a a cubic foot or two of mortar and start troweling it on.
Walk back a few times to refill your bucket and/or hawk (eventually ladders are involved).
Keep mixing small batches and keep walking / climbing.

Synthetic chinking:

Shove in backer rod.
Rent a chink pump with a 25' hose.
Buy a bunch of synthetic mortar in buckets and dump'em in the hopper.
Chink away with the press of a button.
Keep dumping buckets into the hopper as needed, and keep using the 25' hose to apply.


Sure there's a cost difference between mortar chinking and $ynthetic. Material and a pump rental.
Yes, the synthetic can trap more moisture behind it on a seasonal basis, thus can cause rot issues.
Yes, the synthetic can blister and separate, and generally has a 20 year lifespan.
Yes, the synthetic is more of a non-natural material with the accompany off-gassing of chemicals.
Yes, the synthetic can be lit on fire and does emit smoke.

But, it sure saves a lot of time if you're simply building a new home and want to move in quick.