Bricks for Homes and Buildings. In the past, bricks came in many different shapes and sizes, but today’s modern bricks tend to be a standard size of around 8″ x 4″ x 2″. They demonstrate a wide variety of textures, colours and finishes from yellows, reds and purples, to smooth, rough and rustic. These are due to the mineral variations found in the clay, and the method of manufacturing.
Raw surface clay and shale materials are taken from the ground in a process that is called winning. Materials are then carefully blended to control the quality, color and consistency of the desired finished product. The material is then formed by adding water and mixing materials in a pug mill. After mixing, the pugged clay is forced through a die creating a long extruded column of clay which is then wirecut to size. The material is then carried by conveyor systems into the firing kiln where it is first predried, and then carried through the firing stage of the kiln where temperatures can reach nearly 2000 degrees Farenheit. The brick can then be cubed and stored for shipping.
Bricks for building may be made from clay, shale, soft slate, calcium silicate, concrete, or shaped from quarried stone. However, true bricks are ceramic, and therefore created by the action of heat and cooling. Clay is the most common material, with modern clay bricks formed in one of three processes – soft mud, dry press, or extruded. Bricks are used for building and pavement. In the USA, brick pavement was found incapable of withstanding heavy traffic, but it is coming back into use as a method of traffic calming or as a decorative surface in pedestrian precincts. For example, in the early 1900s, most of the streets in the city of Grand Rapids, Michigan were paved with brick. Today, there are only about 20 blocks of brick paved streets remaining.
Solid brickwork is made of two or more layers of bricks with the units running horizontally (called stretcher bricks) bound together with bricks running transverse to the wall (called “header” bricks). Each row of bricks is known as a course. The pattern of headers and stretchers employed gives rise to different bonds such as the common bond (with every sixth course composed of headers), the English bond, and the Flemish bond (with alternating stretcher and header bricks present on every course). Bonds can differ in strength and in insulating ability. Vertically staggered bonds tend to be somewhat stronger and less prone to major cracking than a non-staggered bond.
Bricklaying Terms. Before beginning any of the bricklaying projects, study the following terms and their definitions. This will help you understand the various brick positions and patterns, as well as the typical mortar joints used. Bull Header. A rowlock brick laid with its longest dimensions perpendicular to the face of the wall. Bull Stretcher. A rowlock brick laid with its longest dimension parallel to the face of the wall.
Bricks are a versatile and durable building and construction material, with good load-bearing properties, high thermal mass and potential low energy impact. In the case of simple earth bricks such as adobe and CEBs, they measure high on the sustainability index, being made from locally available (and abundant) materials of clay, sand, and water, using low technology compression equipment, solar energy or kilns. While modern methods of brick construction have a much lower sustainability index, the UK brick industry has developed a strategy to minimize its environmental impact and increase its energy efficiency and use of renewable energies. Overall, bricks are a good example of a sustainable building practice and are currently gaining in popularity around the world.
Innovation in brick and block building is moving forward – thin joint mortar allows the depth of the mortar to be reduced from l0mm to just 2mm increases the speed of construction. Thin-joint system improves thermal insulation and air tightness of construction and increases ease of installation – thin joint mortar can be laid twice as fast as traditional mortar.
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