Want to Design a New House? Know Your Bricks!
Bricks have been an integral part of construction since times immortal. Have you ever thought this simple looking piece of stone can have a history worth a read?
History of Bricks
The first ever form of brick was the sun-dried mud brick. This brick was handmade and then dried in natural sunlight. Ancient races belonging to Tigris-Euphrates basin, who lived around 5,000 years ago are said to be the first users of such bricks. Later, the baked bricks manufactured by Romans played an important role in construction of buildings. The Egyptians and Greeks used bricks limitedly as they had wide access to stone and marbles.
Facts that you should know about bricks
Bricks are so much durable that they can withstand severe wind and extreme weather conditions.- Bricks are great insulators, they store heat energy absorbed during day time and release heat after the sun set.
- Color of the bricks is purely dependent on the mineral contents present in the clay and it is also influenced by the temperature it is fired at.
- Bricks create very little amount of waste, so there is 100 percent productivity.
- Bricks play a very important role in structural construction. They act as a vertebral column for any construction. They are strong and are available in a wide range of varieties in terms of colour, texture and finish.
Different kind of bricks
Given below are a few types of bricks that can be used to build your dream home.
Mud bricks
A mud brick is used worldwide! These bricks have better thermal insulation. They keep your house warmer in winter and cooler in summer. Mud bricks are the only affordable type available in the market and are also considered environmentally less harmful.
Dry pressed bricks
A dry pressed brick is made up of a thick clay mix. These bricks are uniform in shape and size. Heat conductivity is less and has good fusion resistance. Also, these bricks come at much affordable cost.
Extruded bricks
An extruded brick is very special in its kind as it can be blended into desired shapes. These bricks have the most consistent finishing and sharp edges. They possesses high thermal insulation and are best suitable for “zero-energy buildings”.
Calcium silicate bricks
The advantage of Calcium silicate bricks are that they can be used immediately after manufacturing. These bricks are very unique in texture, shape and colour. However, the draw-back is that these bricks are expensive.
Concrete bricks
Concrete bricks are very well known for their durability with good comprehensive strength. The only bricks which provide an acceptable degree of sound insulation are concrete bricks.
Apart from these there are many other kinds of bricks like wire-cut bricks, stock bricks, clay bricks, imperial bricks, red bricks and buff bricks that are available in the market. So choose your brick carefully so you’re “Dream Home” becomes a reality soon and stays for long!
Future Use of bricks
As technology flows in, the replacement of these traditional bricks is sure to happen! One of the future technologies to be soon introduced is the CO2 bricks. These bricks will be used to construct earthquake proof buildings which would be useful especially in countries like Japan.
The much awaited kind of bricks will be the ones which demand less maintenance like painting and plastering, which is today draining away much of our investments. A ready brick which comes available in all the desired color, size and shape is what we must look forward to in future.
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