BRICKS

SPECIFIED
NOMINAL
SIZE VERTICAL
BRICK TYPE SIZE
DXHXL COURSE
DXHXL
(INCHES)

3 5/8 x 2 1/4 x
Standard Not modular 3 courses = 8"
8

3 5/8 x 2 1/4 x
Modular 4 x 2 2/3 x 8 3 courses = 8"
7 5/8

3 5/8 x 2 1/4 x
Norman 4 x 2 2/3 x 12 3 courses = 8"
11 5/8

3 5/8 x 1 5/8 x
Roman 4 x 2 x 12 1 course = 2"
11 5/8

3 5/8 x 2 3/4 x
Jumbo 4x3x8 1 course = 3"
8

3 5/8 x 3 5/8 x
Economy 4x4x8 1 course = 4"
7 5/8

3 5/8 x 2 5 courses =
Engineer 4 x 3 1/5 x 8
13/16 x 7 5/8 16"

2 3/4 x 2 5/8 x 5 courses =

King Not modular
9 5/8 16"

2 3/4 x 2 3/4 x 5 courses =

Queen Not modular
7 5/8 16"

3 5/8 x 3 5/8 x
Utility 4 x 4 x 12 1 course = 4"
11 5/8
PROPERTIES
OF
BRICKS
• The following are the required properties of good bricks:

(i) Colour:
Colour should be uniform and bright.

(ii) Shape:
Bricks should have plane faces. They should have sharp and true
right angled corners.

(iii) Size:
Bricks should be of standard sizes as prescribed by codes.
(iv) Texture:
They should possess fine, dense and uniform texture. They should not
possess fissures, cavities, loose grit and unburnt lime.

(v) Soundness:
When struck with hammer or with another brick, it should produce metallic
sound. (vi) Hardness: Finger scratching should not produce any impression
on the brick. (vii) Strength: Crushing strength of brick should not be less than
3.5 N/mm2. A field test for strength is that when dropped from a height of
0.9 m to 1.0 mm on a hard ground, the brick should not break into pieces.
(viii) Water Absorption:
After immercing the brick in water for 24 hours, water absorption
should not be more than 20 per cent by weight. For class-I works this
limit is 15 per cent.

(ix) Efflorescence:
Bricks should not show white patches when soaked in water for 24
hours and then allowed to dry in shade. White patches are due to the
presence of sulphate of calcium, magnesium and potassium. They keep
the masonry permanently in damp and wet conditions.
(x) Thermal Conductivity:
Bricks should have low thermal conductivity, so that buildings built with
them are cool in summer and warm in winter.

(xi) Sound Insulation:

Heavier bricks are poor insulators of sound while light weight and hollow
bricks provide good sound insulation.

(xii) Fire Resistance:

Fire resistance of bricks is usually good. In fact bricks are used to encase steel
columns to protect them from fire.
BRICK SIZES

Standard Imperial Metric

Australia 9 × 4⅓ × 3 in 230 × 110 × 76 mm
Denmark 9 × 4¼ × 2¼ in 228 × 108 × 54 mm
Germany 9 × 4¼ × 2¾ in 240 × 115 × 71 mm
India 9 × 4¼ × 2¾ in 228 × 107 × 69 mm
Romania 9 × 4¼ × 2½ in 240 × 115 × 63 mm
Russia 10 × 4¾ × 2½ in 250 × 120 × 65 mm
South Africa 8¾ × 4 × 3 in 222 × 106 × 73 mm
Sweden 10 × 4¾ × 2½ in 250 × 120 × 62 mm
United Kingdom 8½ × 4 × 2½ in 215 × 102.5 × 65 mm
United States 7⅝ × 3⅝ × 2¼ in 194 × 92 × 57 mm
Masonry
• Masonry may be defined as the construction of
building units bonded together with mortar.
• The building units commonly know as masonry
units may be Stones, bricks or precast blocks of
concrete.
Masonry Classification

Masonry can be classified into three

categories
1. Brick Masonry
2. Stone Masonry
3. Hollow block concrete masonry
Brick Masonry
• Brick Masonry is made of Brick units bonded
together with mortar.
• Mortar is a mixture of Sand, cement or lime and
water in suitable proportion.
Classification of Bricks
1. Unburnt Bricks:
These bricks are dried through sun light. It is also
called Sun-dried Bricks. They have very low
strength as compared to other types of bricks. It is
believed that first-time bricks were used, in sun-
dried form (unburnt Bricks), in Egypt some 6000
years ago.
2. Burnt Bricks:
The bricks which are used commonly in today’s
age are burnt bricks. They are prepared and burnt
in a kiln. They have high strength as compared to
unburnt bricks. They are further classified into
the following categories
Size of brick

9” x 4-1/2” x 3”
Why is Brick Construction so Popular?
• Aesthetic - Bricks offer natural and a variety of colors,
including various textures.
• Strength - Bricks offer excellent high compressive
strength.
• Porosity - The ability to release and absorb moisture is
one of the most important and useful properties of
bricks, regulating temperatures and humidity inside
structures.
• Fire Protection - When prepared properly a brick
structure can give a fire protection maximum rating of
6 hours.
• Sound Attenuation - The brick sound insulation is
normally 45 decibels for a 4.5 inches brick thickness
and 50 decibels for a nine-inch thick brick.
• Insulation - Bricks can exhibit above normal thermal
insulation when compared to other building materials.
Bricks can help regulate and maintain constant
interior temperatures of a structure due to their
ability to absorb and slowly release heat. This way
bricks can produce significant energy savings, more
than 30% of energy saving when compared to wood.
• Wear Resistant - A brick is so strong, that its
composition provides excellent wear resistance.
• Efflorescence - Efflorescence forms on concrete
structures and surfaces when soluble salts dissolved in
water are deposited and accumulated on surfaces
forming a visible scum.
• Durability - Brick is extremely durable and perhaps is
the most durable man-made structural building
material so far.
Common Terms used in Brick Masonry
Stretcher – This is the brick laid with its length
parallel to face or front or direction of wall.
Header – This is brick laid with its width parallel
to the face or front or direction of wall.
Course – A course is a horizontal layer of brick in
a wall.
Header Course – It is a course of brickwork in
which all the bricks are laid as headers
Component parts of brick
BRICK WALL WITH VARIOUS TERMS
Stretcher Course – It is a course of brickwork in
which all the bricks are laid as stretchers.
Frog – A small depression created purposely on
one side of brick to form a key for holding the
holding the mortar.
Face – The surface of wall exposed to the
weather is called as face.
Back – The Inner surface of a wall which is not
exposed to weather is called as back.
Joint – It is junction of two or more bricks or
stones in a wall construction.
 Facing – The material used in the face of the wall
is known as facing.
Backing – The material used in the back of the
wall is known as backing.
Hearting – The portion of a wall between facing
and backing is known as Hearting.
Arrises – The edges formed by the intersection of
plane surfaces of brick are termed as arrises. In
good quality bricks they are straight and sharp.
Bed – The bottom surface of the brick when it is
laid flat is termed as bed. Lap – It is defined as the
horizontal distance between the vertical joints in
successive courses.
Perpends – It is defined as the vertical joints in each course of masonry
work. For a good bond, the perpends in alternate courses should be
vertically one above the other.
Bond – The method of arranging the bricks in courses so that the
individual units are tied together is called bond.
Closer – A piece of brick which is used to close up the bond at the end
of brick courses is known as a closer
It helps in preventing the joint of successive courses to come in vertical
line.
Closers
Types of closers

1) King Closer
2) Queen Closer
3) Mitred Closer
4) Bevelled Closer
1) King closer –

This is obtained by cutting a piece of brick in

triangular in shape between the center of
header and stretcher.
King closer Diagram
2) Queen closer –
Queen closer is obtained by cutting a brick length
wise into two pieces.
3) Bevelled closer –
• When a triangular portion of a brick is cut
through its half width and to a full length, then
remaining portion after cutting is called as
bevelled closer.
4) Mitred closer
• When a triangular portion of a brick is cut
through its width and making an angle of 45o to
600 with the length of the brick, the remaining
portion after cutting as called as Mitred closer.
Bat- A portion of brick cut across the width is
known as bat There are different types of bats,
namely Half bat, three-quarter bat and bevelled
bat.
Bullnose – The bricks with one edge rounded is
known as single bullnose and the bricks with two
edge rounded are known as double bullnose.
• Quoin
A corner or the external angle on the face side of a wall
is known as quoin.
• Quoin Header
It is the brick used at the corner of two walls meeting
at 90 degree.
Requirement of good brickwork
• A good brick masonry should utilize bricks which are
hard, well burnt and tough with uniform colour, shape
and size.
• The bricks should be compact, homogeneous, free
from holes and cracks.
• A good brickwork should have maximum compressive
strength and durability.
• A good brick work should have maximum resistance to
weathering.
• A good brickwork should be fire resistant.
• When brick dropped from a height of about 3 ft on
another brick, it should not break.
• When brick struck with hammer, it should give a good
metallic sound.
• Brick should have uniform size generally 9”x 4-1/2”x 3”.
Normally 1350 numbers of bricks are required for 1 cu.ft.
of brick work.
Bond in brickwork –
• Brick masonry consist of bricks built to form walls. In order to
hold the bricks in position and to improve the appearance of
the wall.
• The bricks are held together to act as a single unit by
arranging them in such a specific manner, that they rest over
each other and break the continuity of the vertical joints.
• The overlapping arrangement of bricks in order to tie them
together in a mass of brick work is known as bonding.
• Bond is also introduced for its pleasing appearance or to make
decorative patterns.
Types of Bonds –

•Stretcher bond
• Header bond
• English bond
• Flemish bond
Stretcher bond –
• In this type of bond all the bricks are laid with
their lengths In the direction of the wall. This
pattern is used only for walls having thickness of
the half brick i.e. 4-1/2”e. g. Walls in case of
framed structure construction
Header bond
• In this type of bond, all bricks are arranged in header
course.
• This type of arrangement is suitable for walls which
are one brick thick.
• This is suitable for walls of lightly loaded load bearing
structure.
• The bond being formed by three-quarter bat at the
quoin is generally used.
English Bond –
• This is most common and popular bond is used for
wall thickness ranging 20 cm and above.
• This type of bond has alternate courses of header and
stretchers.
• A queen closer must be provided after the quoin
header. A Header course should never start with a
queen closer.
• Continuous vertical joints should not be allowed.
Flemish Bond –
• In this arrangement of bonding brickwork each
course consists of alternate header and stretchers.
• Every alternate course starts with a header at the
corner.
MANUFACTURING
OF
BRICKS
Manufacture
4 stages
• Material preparation
• Moulding
• drying
• Firing
Materials / Clay preparation
• Material Preparation:
• material (clay) washed and grinding (fineness) Sample of grinding
machine for clay Sample of crushing machine
• 18. Clay is prepared by crushing and/or grinding and mixing with
small quantities of sand, ash and lime until it is of a uniform
consistency.
• Water may be added to increase plasticity (a process known as
‘tempering’). In some cases chemicals such as barium carbonate is
added to reduce the problem of efflorescence, crystallization damage
or chemical attack of the mortar
Materials preparation Weathering
• The soil is left in heaps and exposed to weather for at least
one month in cases where such weathering is considered
necessary for soil.
• The soil is turned at least twice and it is ensured that the
entire soil is wet throughout the period of weathering. • The
purpose of weathering is to disintegrate big boulders of clay
under the action of atmospheric agencies to make it a uniform
mass and also to eliminate the impurities which get oxidized.
Materials preparation Tempering
• After weathering, the required quantity of water should be mixed
with the soil to obtain the right consistency for moulding. Addition of
sand and other materials, if necessary, may be made at this stage to
modify the composition of the soil. • The quantity of water to be
added, may range from ¼ to 1/3 of the weight of soil, sandy soils
requiring less water and clayey soils more water. But the nature and
degree of wetness of the soil at this stage should also be duly
considered.
 • There are 4 methods of moulding as follow
1. Semi-dry process
2. Stiff plastic process
3. Wire-cut process
4. Soft mud process
• Used in manufacture of bricks having a moisture content of
around 10% in the clay
• The ground and the screened material has a dry granular
consistency which is still evident in the fractured surfaces of
the fired brick
 • Applicable to clays having a moisture content of about 15%
• Should possess stiff plasticity
• Clay is extruded and then compacted into a mould under higher
pressure
• Many engineering blocks are made by this process
• Clay is tempered to 20% moisture content • Extruded to a size which
allows for drying and firing shrinkage • Units are cut to the correct
thickness by tensioned wires
• For clays having very high moisture content
• Clay is pressed into moulds having sanded surfaces to
prevent the clay from sticking to the surfaces of the
mould.
• After bricks become in form, then the identification or
perforation will occur to the bricks.
Drying
• Wet unit bricks will be drying in space or room with control
temperature to make sure that the bricks completely dry.
Brick compile before taking to the kiln
• Drying is essentially evaporation of moisture either in a
normal atmosphere or with controlled humidity and
temperature.
• Drying is done prior to burning of bricks. The purpose is to
reduce the tendency of the bricks to distort or crack while
burning.
Drying
• Drying is slow, otherwise cracks may develop on its
surface. The process is usually take a number of days (3
to 10 days).
• For artificial drying, this is done by drying bricks in
chambers or tunnels.
• Hot flue gases may be used to heat these chambers
or tunnels. Temperature is usually maintained at 120°C
and the bricks get dried within 1 to 3 days.
Firing
• Dry bricks, compile in kiln to start the firing process with 600 C
(temperature). This is for burn the carbon and sulfur that have
remain. After that, temperature will increase to 900 C to get a
verification process.
• Normally, verification process occurred around 800 C.
• Bricks become hard/strong after verification process. Beehive Kiln
Tunnel Kiln
Types
of
Bricks
Types of Bricks Based on Quality

Depending on quality, bricks are three type

• First class brick
• Second class brick, and
• Third class brick.
• First class brick: These bricks are made from good quality raw
materials. Color of first class brick is uniform. These are regular in size
and shape and doesn’t absorb more than 20% water of its own dry
weight when immersed in fresh water for 24 hours. The crushing
strength of this type of brick should be 1500 lbs/in2
• Second class brick: The quality of bricks of this type is little bit less
from first class brick. Such as it can be slightly over burned. The size
and shape can be slightly differ from standard. The crushing strength
of this brick-type should be above 1000 lbs/in2. These bricks don’t
absorb more than 22% water of its own weight after 24 hours
immersion in fresh water.
• Third class brick: This type of brick isn’t uniform in size and shape. It
can be over burnt or under burnt. It doesn’t absorb more than 25%
water of its own weight when immersed 24 hours in fresh water.
Crushing strength of this type is more than 500 kg/cm2.
Types of Bricks Based on Raw Materials

Depending on raw materials used for making bricks, it

can be following types –
• Burnt clay brick
• Fly ash clay brick
• Concrete brick
• Sand-Lime brick
• Fire clay brick
• Burnt clay brick: This type of bricks are usually made from
clay by burning. These are the common type of bricks for
construction work.
• Fly ash clay brick: When fly ash is mixed with clay for
producing brick that is fly ash clay brick.
• Concrete brick: The main raw materials for this type of bricks
are cement and sand. It is also called mortar brick.
• Sand-Lime brick: Lime is used instead of cement with
sand for producing this type of bricks.
• Fire brick: This type of bricks are made from fire clay.
These bricks can tolerate high temperature without
distortion and cracking. That’s why it can be used in
fireplaces
Types of Bricks Based on Using Location

• Types of Bricks Based on Using Location

• Depending on using location, bricks can be two types –
• Facing brick, and
• Backing brick.
• Facing brick: This type of bricks are used on the surface of backing
wall. These are high quality and shows various texture on their
surface.
• Backing brick: These type of brick doesn’t contain any texture on its
surface. It works as backing support of facing brick.
Types of Bricks Based on Weather Resisting Capability

• Depending on weather resisting capability bricks

are three types –
• Severe Weather grade (SW)
• Moderate Weather grade (MW)
• No Weather grade (NW).
• Severe weather grade: This type of bricks can withstand
against repeated freeze-thaw actions. These are useful for
the countries where severe freeze-thaw actions happened.
• Moderate Weather grade (MW): This type of bricks can be
useful for hot-weathering affected countries where freeze-
thaw action doesn’t happen much.
• No Weather grade (NW): This type of bricks are general and
it doesn’t have any weather resisting capability. It’s mostly
used in interior wall.
Types of Bricks Based on Purpose of Their Using
• Purpose of their using bricks can be following types –
• Common bricks
• Engineering bricks.
• Common bricks: This type of bricks are used for
general purpose with no special requirements. Walls
that are made with this type of bricks should be
plastered.
• Engineering bricks: This type of bricks are burned at
extremely high temperature to form a strong and
dense product. It has excellent load bearing capacity
and high damp-proof capability
END