USING THE FACING BRICK
FACING BRICKS, A CONVENIENT CHOICE.
Nowadays, the facing brick is repurposed as a natural material, where the call to physicality, to ma-teriality, to the natural tendence to adapt to the environment and to the territorial context prevail. It’s a valuable element in the house, and it can fully qualify the architectural proposal. It’s also very convenient.
Even if the realisation of a wall made of facing bricks has a slightly higher price at the beginning, the costs of the maintenance is lower. In fact, a wall made of facing bricks doesn’t require mainte-nance, while a wall made of plaster requires a higher frequency of washes (usually every 5 years) be-cause the paint is compromised by the solar irradiation and by the aggression of some environments (industrial area).
In addition, the plaster needs to be restored at least partially every 10 years, and the paint needs to be restored every 15-20 years. Lastly, if you want to mantain the good appearance of your house, after 50 years there will only be a few plaster walls that won’t need a rebuilding.
Therefore, after 50 years, a building made of facing bricks will determine savings in the total costs of construction and maintenance, that can go from 100 to 200 euros per mq (it depends from the type of brick or finish) or, if preferable, within 10-15 years will regain the higher initial cost. Fur-thermore, while the plastered wall gradually looses its aesthetic value, the brick wall enhances it dur-ing the years, obtaining what is called “unmistakable patina of the time”
PRACTICAL ADVICE FOR THE USE OF THE FACING BRICK
A masonry made of facing bricks, doesn’t need maintenance. So it’s good to adapt some adjust-ments that allow the brick to preserve its aesthetic and endurance characteristics.
We report some project recommendations and tricks that are good to have in a building site, connet-ing to a more detailed manual from the association ANDIL.
CONFRONTING THE PERFORMANCES
The variety of materials used in the building and the refining of masonry veneer walls have different architectural values and performances, as shown by the following table.
| EXTERNAL WALL | ARCHITECTURAL VALUE | RESISTANCE TO FROST | THERMAL DILATATION | INSOLATING POWER TO EXTERNAL NOISES |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WALL WITH AN EMPTY TRUNK with facing bricks posed externally | The facing brick is a product that is suitable for multiple solutions, depending on the type of superficial treatment (sandblasted, ashlar, ecc.), disposal (head first, ecc.), color (red, yellow, brown, ecc.) profile of the joints (grouted profile: squared, splayed, round, angular; constipated profile: brushed, sponged, ecc.). | The typical porosity of the brick enables the facing bricks ro resist, without any damage, to, cycles of frost and thaw that can verify during the life of the building. | The thermal dilatations are reduced thanks to the higher mass of the brick, reducing also the stresses in the contact points between the structure and the bump.. | The homogeneity of the wall and higher mass of the facing brick guarantee a very high acoustic insulation( about 50 decibel ). It increases of 0,7 decibel for every growth of 10 kg/mq in the masonry. |
| WALL WITH AN EMPTY TRUNK with punctured plastered elements placed on the outside | The architectural value, linked to the possibilità to choose between countless alternatives of colors and finishes, is conditioned , by the use of special products destined to deteriorate quickly because of the lack of chemical-physical stability of the components. | The resistance to frost is generally good for the presence of a internal macro-porosity due to the typical drilling and the breathability of the brick. But it can still result compromised due to the low breathability of the superficial finish. | The movements of the walls are higher because of their lower mass. The walls exposed to the sun reach quickly the highest temperatures. The temperatures determinate dilatation, creating cracks and undesirable gaps. | The acoustic insulation of the wall is low because of the presence of an high percentage of drillings and because of the low homogeneity of the masonry. |
| ONE-LAYER WALL in plastered termoinsulating blocks | What’s illustrated for the postere walls with drilling elements can be applied. | What’s illustrated for the postere walls with drilling elements can be applied. | The thermal dilatations are visibly reduced tank to the higher mass of the blocks; therefore the stresses between the contact points are lower. | The acoustic insulation power of the wall is high because of the higher mass of the block. |
THE TREATMENT
After many studies on the materials and the following tests in buildings placed in different climate group, TERRAEMILIA is able to offer and guarantee a unique treatment that has a great penetrat-ing power to protect the material and cover it, but without seal the pores and the walls with a layer with a hydrophobic affect.
This unique treatment is executed during the selection fases of the product before the packaging, in order to avoid high costs derived from potential following treatments.
The layer of the treatment surrounds the brick tanks to an industrial tested procedure.
The adepte technology guarantees a good resistance to water vapor, to allow its elimination in order to maintain the idrothermal balance between the internal and the external masonry and a better con-dition of use, without having to use glues or suffer from the slipping affect, that cause delays in the installation of the facing brick.
