Brick is one of the oldest building materials, only stone and wood are older.
The simplest adobe brick, simply dried in the sun, was widespread more than 10 thousand years ago, even in the ancient states of Mesopotamia.
They made it simply: clay mixed with resin and sawdust was tightly rammed into a mold, left for several days in the sun and then put into construction.
Somewhat later, already in ancient times, they learned how to bake bricks, making them very durable and practically eternal.
Since the IV century, the material has also been known in Russia - mainly, stoves were built from it. So the red-brick Moscow Kremlin began with the construction of a special kiln, which was designed and built by Aristotle Fiorovanti himself using Italian technology unknown to Muscovites at that time.
"Aristotle's brick", as it was called in Moscow, was distinguished by its high strength and evenness of the surface and, in addition to the Moscow walls and towers, the Cathedral of St. Basil the Blessed, as well as the Novgorod and Kazan Kremlin were erected from it.
Modern standard brick is a distant relative of the old one due to the changed manufacturing technology.
Unlike pressing in molds, which gave the material increased strength, in mass production the clay block is cut and then fired.
The elements turn out to be quite strong and, most importantly, cheap, which makes them popular in the mainstream segment. The reverse side of mass character is monotony, because even "curly" bricks hardly allow individualizing the exterior of buildings. Therefore, those who strive for greater variety or want historicity and naturalness, it is better to turn to bricks produced, like the "Aristotelian brick", according to old recipes, that is, "hand-molded".
The production of hand-molded bricks is, of course, also automated, which guarantees the quality of each element.
Clay through the press dispensers enters the rotating belts and enters the molds, sprinkled with sand for better mass extraction. Excess clay is cut off, the formed block is turned over and the form is removed, after which the elements are fired in a furnace at a high temperature, over 1000 ° C. The color of the clay mass and the sand used in the form ultimately determine the shade of the material. Thanks to the traditional technology, we get “historical” bricks at the output - with an uneven edge, unusual texture, slightly different colors.
And due to its dense structure, the material is many times superior in durability to other facing solutions. It is strong, durable, frost-resistant. Over time, its color does not fade, and stains do not form on the surface."
When a part is equal to a whole
Due to the peculiarities of the technology, the dimensions of hand-molded bricks are somewhat different from the usual ones.
There is a "full" format (215x102x65 mm), it is marked with the abbreviation WFD.
And there is a growing popularity "reduced" ECO-brick (ECO-WFD), which is also produced in Belgium and is a block with a square section (215x65x65 mm).
This brick is almost a quarter lighter, cheaper by the same amount and much more convenient to transport (relatively speaking, cladding from ECO-brick for a standard two-story cottage with an area of about 200 meters can be brought in one long truck, and for a regular WFD you will need two).
In modern Europe, ECO-brick has become fashionable for several main reasons (and all of them are associated with reasonable prudence):
- firstly, in order to fit the building into the historical context (most European cities are characterized by their historical buildings), it is necessary to use the appropriate materials, and the ECO-WFD format allows significant savings;
- secondly, love for the environment (and, again, savings, which is important) - old residential buildings do not meet today's heat protection requirements, so you have to insulate the facade. ECO-brick allows you to do this without changing the foundation - additional insulation fits perfectly into the 35 mm gap;
- thirdly, the craving for individual design - a house, as a rule, is a project of a lifetime, and it must correspond to the owners, but it is not a sin to take advantage of the opportunity to reduce costs without affecting quality.
In general, Russian realities are not very different from European ones - the time has passed for a lot of money, everyone has learned to count, tastes have also evolved - therefore, the ECO-brick that appeared on the domestic market aroused the interest of both private developers and professional architects.
Handmade brick, especially this textured one, is an "honest" material. Due to its massiveness, it visually personifies tectonicity and strength. Its very nature evokes an unconscious sense of reliability and durability. On an intuitive level, a non-professional feels it, and for a specialist, texture, expressive surface relief, a variety of colors give the broadest opportunities for the embodiment of truly original ideas.
The ECO-WFD format allows you to optimize costs without losing the quality and beauty of the project and fit even into a relatively limited budget.
It can be added that, in addition to the beauty of the design, the use of ECO-brick instead of a larger WFD in new construction allows you to significantly increase the internal space - 3.5 cm is added on each side … It seems to be a little, but, for example, in a house of 10x10 m, this gives an increase in the internal area of about 1.5 m 2 - quite enough to accommodate a guest bathroom.
Behind a stone wall
Despite its "historicity", hand-molded bricks do not require any special tricks to work.
Hand-molded brick Terca has been produced by the Austrian concern Wienerberger for over 200 years, and its use as a facing material is not limited by anything.
This applies to all formats, including ECO-brick. It is used both for exterior decoration and for the construction of interior elements, for example, interior walls, decorative inserts, etc. It also allows you to create complex architectural elements such as cornices or ledges.
Of course, for high-quality masonry, certain rules must be followed. For example, in the case of anchoring ECO-brick masonry to a load-bearing wall using flexible point ties made of stainless steel or basalt, it is recommended to use an additional 1.5 ties / m2 more than for ordinary masonry. That is, if for an ordinary brick 5-7 ties are used per m2, then for an ECO brick 6.5-8.5 ties are needed per "square".
In the case of using additional insulation, it is desirable to arrange expansion joints in the front masonry every 7-12 meters of masonry, depending on the cardinal direction.
And in order to increase the structural strength of the facing masonry and prevent the formation of cracks, it is necessary to make reinforcement in every 4-5 row using a mesh made of corrosion-resistant steel or steel with an anti-corrosion coating 30 mm wide.
In the standard type of ECO-brick half-brick masonry, when bandaging at the corners, it is necessary to use a brick sawn up to 177.5 mm through a row on each of the adjoining walls.
One of the non-obvious, but interesting ways of application can be considered the construction of fences from ECO-WFD - such a fence looks unusual and beautiful, turning a completely modern site into a European corner.
A memorable option can be the alternation of multi-colored bricks - the color of hand-molded bricks, depending on the type of clay and sand, can vary widely - from white to black, including classic terracotta. However, in this case, it is better to contact a professional designer - he will select the optimal pattern and color.
As you know, "we are not rich enough to buy cheap things."This principle works especially well in construction and architecture - the cost of quality material, as a rule, does not critically affect the cost of the project, but significantly add value to an already constructed building. Moreover, today we also have the possibility of reasonable savings without sacrificing quality and beauty.
You can view the assortment of Terca bricks in ECO WFD format in the catalog
Material provided by Wienerberger
