Brick Masonry Construction Tips
Special care will be needed when quality masonry is performed. The following are some simple tips for brick masonry to ensure quality construction.
1. Good quality brick masonry must always use bricks that are good quality, hard, well burnt, and tough, that have a uniform size, color, and shape.
2. The bricks must be compact, homogeneous, have no holes, cracks, stone lumps, flaws, or air bubbles, and should be soaked properly in water for at least 2 hours before they are used.
3. When it comes to laying them, the bricks must be laid on their beds with the face pointing upwards.
4. The brick courses have to be laid horizontal and have vertical joints.
5. As far as possible the use of brick-bats goes, they should be discouraged unless deemed otherwise.
6. As far a possible the brickwork must be raised uniformly with a strong mortar. Generally, the height of brick masonry done in a day should be no more than 1.5m. The maximum difference in the rise of the wall when compared to the different portions should never be more than 1 meter.
7. When the mortar is green, the face joints must be raked to 12 to 19mm in depth, this provides a good space for plastering or pointing. The mortar joints must be flush and finished when no plastering or pointing is done.
8. In order to make sure that there is a continuous bond between the old and the new brickwork, the walls need to be stopped with a toothed end.
9. Finished brickwork using lime mortar must be cured between 2 – 3 weeks. This, however, can be reduced to 1 to 2 weeks when the brickwork uses cement mortar.
For information pertaining to the quality masonry services that City Masonry Inc can offer you, please do not hesitate to dial this number (515) 328-6515 now, we are based in the Urbandale, IA area.