A brick is a kind of block directed to build walls, pavements and other elements in construction works.

The term brick implies a block contained of dried clay and also denoted as chemically cured construction
blocks. Bricks can be joined together using, adhesives, mortar, as well as through interlocking them.
Bricks are manufactured in various types, materials, classes, and sizes which depends with region and
time interval, and are produced in bulk quantities.

It is used as a substitute of stone, where the stone is not readily available. Brick chips are often used as
coarse aggregate in the concrete mix.

The concrete commonly used to make concrete blocks is a mixture of powdered portland cement,
water, sand, and gravel. This produces a light gray block with a fine surface texture and a high
compressive strength. A typical concrete block weighs 38-43 lb (17.2-19.5 kg).

Cement

Though cement makes up the smallest percentage of the mixture, it’s an essential ingredient in
concrete. Cement serves as the glue that keeps everything else together. It’s also what allows the ready
mix to harden once it’s placed. There are five different types of cement depending on what kind of
concrete you’re looking to make:

Type I is used for most residential work

Type II is used in moderate sulfate conditions

Type III is used in climates where freezing is a risk

Type IV is used for special orders like industrial placements

Type V is used in extreme sulfate conditions

Types I and II are the most widely used residentially in the United States due to the relatively moderate
climates we experience here.

Air and Water

For a mixture to be effective, some amount of air entrainment (tiny air bubbles) is needed in the
concrete. Air-entrained cement ensures that excess water has a chance to expand when it moves
through the freeze-thaw cycle. These air bubbles, however, must be microscopically small or else the
‘entrained’ air will turn into ‘entrapped’ air which leads to shrinkage and cracking.
Amongst all of the other essential ingredients involved in creating a mixture, water tends to have the
largest impact. As a rule of thumb, the more water that you put into the mixture, the less strength the
hardened mixture will have. Shrinkage and cracking are also probable when too much water is involved.
Excess water will eventually evaporate out of the hardened concrete, causing the concrete to shrink and
eventually crack.

An ideal amount of water can be measured by water to cement ratio, which should vary between .4
and .6. The higher the ratio, the weaker the concrete. A good way to test the solubility of your concrete
is to perform a slump test. This will help to determine whether or not your mixture contains too much
water.

Gravel and Sand

As you can see, gravel and sand aggregates make up about 70% of the mixture. This high percentage
makes the mixture more economical–as gravel and sand are both stronger and more cost-effective than
the cement. A good ready mix will include proportionate amounts of both large (gravel) and small
(sand).

The reason for this is that the gravel makes up the majority of the ready-mix and the smaller sand
particles do a good job of filling in any extra spots that could otherwise be filled by unwanted air
pockets.

Well there you have it, the ingredients that combine to create the most widely used building material in
the world–concrete. As you can see, each ingredient and its ratio impacts the final ready mix’s quality
and type. It’s important that you get the best ready mix for your specific job. That’s why we’ve created
this Ready Mix Checklist to help you and your ready mix supplier create just what you need.