Types of Face Brick Wall
There are three possible ways of using face brick in building a wall, determined by the backing up material employed, each of which will be given special attention in the following pages.
Solid Brick
First, there is the solid brick wall, consisting of face brick with a common brick backing. Of the strength, permanence, and structural value of this construction there can be no question. Objection is sometimes made to its cost but, in view of the facts we give later, this objection loses its force and proves to be a claim of actual economy. The only other objection heard is that of the dampness of the wall. This comes from one or both of two causes, pervious mortar joints, or sweating due to condensation of interior moisture on the cooled wall. Either condition may be completely overcome by furring the interior wall surface, a method recommended in this Manual, and provided for in the plans offered. The furring provides an air space that insulates against dampness and cold. With this furring, the other methods, sometimes employed, of mixing so-called waterproofing material with the mortar or of using colorless liquid waterproofing on the surface of the brickwork are not necessary. Even the furring, in certain climatic conditions as proved out by local experience and practice, is not needed. But in any case, it must always be seen that all the exterior joints of the wall, especially the head or vertical joints, are solidly filled with mortar. The possibility of efflorescence, which occasionally appears on the surface of the brick when the outside of the wall has been subjected to excessive moisture, may be prevented to a great extent by avoiding such ledges and projections in construction as permit the soaking of water into the surface of the brick work. See Glossary, page 110.
Hollow Tile Backing
Secondly, the face brick wall may be built by using hollow tile in place of common brick for backing. This wall, like that of solid brick, being all of burnt clay, has the advantage of being fire-resistive, although insurance rates are not always as favorable because, in case of fire, the salvage is not as large as with the solid wall. Some builders prefer this type of wall, claiming that it is less expensive to build and that the hollow dead air spaces act as a heat insulation, giving a drier and warmer wall. On these points we have no means of forming a definite, final opinion. Your best plan would be to consult both the common brick and hollow tile people so as to form a judgment of your own on the subject. Either wall is sound construction and will give you entire satisfaction.
Face Brick Veneer
The third type of wall, known as veneer, is simply the application of face brick to the wooden framing of a frame house, in place of the clapboards or shingles. Although, as a substantial or a fire restrictive wall this type is not equal to solid brick or hollow tile, it has its friends among builders, largely on the score of local custom, familiarity, speed of construction, and cost. What it has to recommend it is the fact that in outer appearance and value it is a brick house, and in reality a big step in the right direction. But whichever type of wall you build, it is the face brick that gives to it character, distinction, class, all of which means not only deep personal satisfaction to the owner, but real money in higher rental or sales value, far in excess of the initial cost of the face brick over poorer and less attractive material.
Weakness of Frame
Take the frame wall. Where it is exposed to the weather, it shrinks, decays, and depreciates, requiring repeated paintings and repairs. Now substitute, at an added cost of only 4 or 5 per cent, a fine face brick for the drop siding and at once there is practically cut out painting, repairs, and depreciation. The brick veneer has surrounded the house with a solid, monolithic, permanent, windproof, shell of fireproof material, so that in consequence the owner has on the exterior, to all intents and purposes, the strength and beauty of a face brick house. Besides his own personal satisfaction, he has added many times more than 4 or 5 per cent to the market value of his property. Or, suppose your client has an old frame house that is built on a good plan, but outwardly grown dilapidated in appearance and hard to rent or sell. Induce him to veneer it with an attractive face brick, as we explain on a later page, and for every dollar he puts in he will get two out.
Weakness of Stucco
Then take hollow tile wall construction and compare the value of it finished with stucco or with face brick. The face brick will cost from 2 to 3 per cent more on the cost of the house, but what will it give the owner in wear, appearance, and solidity of construction! If you stucco hollow tile the interior face of the wall in most cases must be furred. If you use face brick, not only additional solidity and strength are added to the wall but if, as we recommend throughout this Manual, an air space is left between brick and tile, the inside furring is not needed. Besides, stucco is apt to stain, crack, or, in damp climates with freezing weather, peel off in spots, presenting an unsightly appearance. You can assure your client, who is debating between stucco and face brick, that years of usage will prove the brick surface to be both in artistic appearance and actual economy by far the better investment. It costs a little more at the start, but is worth much more in the end.
Value of Looks
Or, it may be that your client concludes to build a thoroughly good solid brick wall, but wants to save 3 to 4 per cent on the total cost of the house by using common brick throughout. This will be a good wall, no doubt, but how will it look! Common brick are not made with an eye to external appearance; their great merit lies in solid structural value. Occasionally a well-burned selected common brick, made of a clay that burns to a good color may be found and used, with proper care of bond and mortar joint, for facing purposes; but as a rule, the method of manufacturing common brick, and the structural uses for which they are intended do not contribute to the attractiveness of the wall surface. Hence, the natural development of the great face brick industry which adds to the solid structural merits of brick the invaluable merit of looks.
And how much do looks have to do with both the sentimental and commercial value of a house! What does the good wife think of the looks of the house she lives in? What do the neighbors think of it? And to be purely practical, what does the prospective renter or buyer think of it? You know that when a man wishes to sell his house, he cleans up the yard, repairs the fence, patches up the holes, and paints the house from top to bottom because he knows the value of looks. He knows that his restoring the house to its pristine glory attracts the purchaser, helps to persuade him, and secures a far better price of sale.
Cleanliness, looks, beauty, have a very real value in dollars and cents. The same principle applies to a face brick finish of the wall surface. Face brick are made with more care, are handled and shipped with more care, and laid with more care, just for the purpose of producing a more attractive wall. When you use face brick for your clients, you give them the last word in wall construction, which is at once, as no other material, strong, enduring, comfortable, fire-safe, economical, and beautiful.