Practical hints to builders and those contemplating building / Facts worth considering relating to foundation, cellar, kitchen, chimney, cistern, brick-work, mortar, heating, ventilation, the roof, and many items of interest to builders.

by National Sheet Metal Roofing Co.

BRICK-WORK.

“Brick from the run of the kiln” will answer for most houses; those of even color, well-burnt and regular shape, should be selected for the outside walls and chimneys. Those of irregular shape, too hard or too soft for outside walls, can be used for filling in, or partition walls. No soft burnt brick should be allowed where exposed to the weather. Supposing the foundation is finished, and first-floor joists are laid, commence by filling between joists, flush with the top of joists and even with the inside of foundation walls, so no shelves are left between the joists for the purpose shown in hints under the head of “Foundation,” [page 6].

If the inside of outside walls are to be furred, be prepared to insert strips about the thickness of common lath between brick joints at points where base boards are to be put, and to fasten long strips or grounds as called by plasterers. No mortar should be put between the lath strip and the brick, but let the lath be pressed by the surface of the upper and lower brick; the natural settling of the wall will hold the lath tight enough to bear any amount of nailing.

For doors and windows, insert pieces same thickness, but large enough to receive the casings. These thin pieces inserted in the mortar joints are better and cheaper than plugs or wooden brick, which are apt to shrink and become loose when the brick-work dries. It is very important that flues for ventilation and chimneys be properly started (see “Chimneys”) and carried through the roof to a height, if possible, above the apex of the roof. Ventilating flues should run alongside the chimney flues where the construction favors them. Too much care cannot be taken in building these flues. They should be carefully and smoothly plastered on the inside, and no wood-work be allowed nearer than five inches from the inside of flue. It is customary to use headers (cross bricks) every five courses, to bind the walls together. Many people object to headers, and prefer to expose only the edge surface of the brick. This can be done by clipping the inside courses of outside brick so as to allow the middle course to lay angular across the wall, with opposite courses resting half way between and on the outside courses, or by using square brick. The latter is a saving of labor if they can be had at a reasonable price. The thickness of walls depends entirely upon the size of structure to be built. For ordinary dwelling-houses, twelve inches is thick enough for outside walls and nine inches for partition walls. Mortar for brick-work above foundation should be made of one part of good lime, slacked at time of mixing the mortar, and four parts of screened sharp sand. The cementing qualities of sand and fresh lime depend on the purity of the sand. By pure sand we mean that which is free from loam or clay.