NDID 1104: Materials in Interior Design and Application

Sri Lanka National Design Institute (SLNDI)

Study guide, definitions, and notes

Bricks
A brick is a building material used to make walls, pavements, flooring, and other elements in
masonry construction. Traditionally the term brick referred to a unit composed of clay, but it is now
used to denote any rectangular units laid in mortar.

Normal brick sizes are - 250mm x 125mm x 75mm (10” x 5” x 3”)

Classes of bricks
1. 1st class brick
2. 2nd class brick
3. 3rd class brick
4. Moulded brick

Moulded bricks
Part of brick Image

Single bullnose

Double bullnose

Curved

Single cant

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Coping brick

Double cant

Plinth stretcher

Cow nose

Bird mouth

Squints

Plinth header

Dogleg

Queen closer

King closer

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 Half bat

Bevelled closer

Bevelled bat

Bullnose

Three quarter bat

Brick bonds
Various types of brick bonds are,

1. Stretcher bond
2. Header bond
3. English bond
4. Garden wall bond
5. Raking bond
6. Dutch bond
7. English cross bond
8. Flemish bond

Terminology
 Stretcher – This is brick with its length parallel to the face or front or direction of a wall. The
course containing stretchers is called a stretcher course.
 Header – This is a brick laid with its breadth or width parallel to the face or front or direction
of a wall. The course containing headers is called a header course.

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 Arises – The edges of a brick are called as arises
 Bed – Bed is the lower surface of the brick when laid flat.
 Bed joint – The horizontal layer of mortar upon which bricks are laid is known as a bed joint.
 Perpend – The vertical joints separating the bricks in either length or cross directions are
known as perpends.
 Lap – The horizontal distance between the vertical joints in successive courses is termed as
a lap.
 Closer – A piece of brick that is used to close up the bond at the end of brick courses is
known as a closer and it helps in preventing the joints of successive courses to come in a
vertical line.
 Queen closer – This is obtained by cutting the brick longitudinally into two equal parts.
 King closer – This 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.
 Bevelled closer – This is obtained by cutting a triangular portion of half the width but of full
length.
 Mitred closer – This is obtained by cutting a triangular portion of the brick through its width
and making an angle of 45 degrees to 60 degrees with the length of the brick.
 Bat – This is a piece of brick, usually considered about the length of brick and accordingly
known as half-bat or three-quarter bat.
 Bullnose – A brick moulded with a rounded angle is termed a bullnose.
 Splays – These are specially moulded bricks that are often used to form a plinth
 Frog or Kick – A frog is an indentation in the face of a brick to form a key for holing the
mortar. No frogs are provided in wire-cut bricks. A pressed brick has two frogs, and a hand-
made brick has only one frog.