What is brick masonry?
Brick Masonry is the systematic arrangement of brick and bonding with cement mortar or Lime mortar. The strength of the brick masonry depends upon (i) the Quality of the bricks, (ii) the Quality of the mortar and (iii) the Method of bonding used
Terminology
Header
A brick laid with its width W parallel to the face or direction of a wall is known as a Header or a brick laid with its Length L perpendicular to the front of the wall is known as a header. It’s the shorter square face of the brick which measures 9cm x 9cm.
Stretcher
It is a brick laid with its length parallel to the face of the wall.
Course
The course is a horizontal layer of brick masonry
Header course
It is a course or layer of brickwork showing only the header on the exposed face of the wall.
Stretcher course
it is a course or layer of brickwork showing the stretchers on the exposed face of the wall.
Bed
The bed is the lower surface of a brick in each course.
Bed joint
Bed joints are the horizontal layer of mortar on which bricks are laid.
Lap
Lap is the horizontal distance between the vertical joints of successive courses.
Quoin
It is a corner of the exterior of the brickwork.
Perpends
The vertical Joints either in the length or in cross directions are known as perpends,
Arrises
Arrises are the edge formed by the intersection of plane surfaces of brick.
Frog
A frog is a depression on the top face of a brick. It is made for forming a key for the mortar.
Brickbat
A brickbat is a piece of brick designated according to its length. If it is half the length of the brick, it is called a half bat.
A three-quarter (3/4) bat is one whose length is 3/4 of a brick.
Closer
It is a piece of brick used to close up the bond at the end of the brick course. It prevents vertical joints of successive courses from coming one over the other, There are three types of closers used
- King closer
- Queen closer
- bevelled closer
King closer
It is obtained by cutting a triangular portion of the brick such that half a header and half a stretcher are obtained on the adjoining cut faces.
Queen closer
It is a piece of brick obtained by cutting a brick longitudinally into 2 equal parts. it is placed next to the queen header in the header course.
Bevelled closer
Bevelled closer is obtained by cutting a triangular portion of the brick, joining half the header and full stretcher. It is used for splayed brickwork like jambs of doors and windows.
Squint quoin
It is a brick cut such that an angle other than 90° is formed in the plan.
Principles of brick masonry construction
Precautions to be observed in brick masonry
IS: 1077 Quality
Bricks should be well burnt, strong, and durable, with sharp edges and standard dimensions of uniform colour. They should satisfy IS 1077:1992 requirements
For more IS code books refer here – IS code books used in civil engineering with pdf download (2000+ code books)
Soaking in water
Bricks should be soaked in water just before laying. This is to prevent the absorption of moisture from the mortar and for better adherence of bricks to mortar. (For lime and mud mortars, bricks should not be soaked in water)
Laying horizontally with frogs facing up
Bricks should be laid horizontally with frogs facing up, to facilitate good bonding of bricks.
Lapping
Anyone brick should lap over at least two other bricks in the course below it.
Height of construction
The height of the brick masonry constructed per day should not exceed 10 layers or 1m to avoid non-uniform settlement of brick masonry.
Vertical joints
Vertical joints in alternate courses should be in one vertical line.
Length of construction
The length of construction should not be more than 1m at a time. After this, the brick masonry should be constructed vertically.
Checking
All vertical faces should be frequently checked with a plumb bob. Also, wall junctions should be checked for perpendicularity.
Brickbats
In the brickwork, brickbats should not be used except as closers.
Curing
The constructed brick masonry walls should not be used cured for one to two weeks.
Raked back
The incomplete end of the brickwork is raked back, by stepping the brickwork
Occurrence of cracks
Horizontal and vertical expansion joints should be provided in the walls to reduce the occurrence of cracks in the walls.
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