Brick weight and how to measure it

Brick is the most common building material in the world. Without it, it is difficult to imagine residential buildings, industrial buildings and various structures. The building material in question has different sizes, is made of materials with different density and according to different technologies, respectively, has differences in weight. Weight parameters are important, since they determine the calculated values ​​of the foundation, on which the entire load of a building or structure falls, and the strength of the structure.

There is a huge variety of bricks and, in accordance with domestic state standards, products are divided into different groups depending on their scope and technical characteristics.

By appointment, there are the following types.

• Structural - are intended for making walls for various purposes (load-bearing, interior) both inside and outside the premises. They also include a basement brick, ordinary.
• Facial - required for final finishing. Blocks can be made from natural or artificial materials, there is a huge variety of colors, different sizes. Face brick can be used as a construction material.

The structure can be distinguished:

• hollow, in the production of which forms are used, in which there are holes in the blocks to ensure low thermal conductivity, respectively, this type of brick is more energy-saving;
• full-bodied, that is, there are no voids inside the brick, this can be a standard furnace block;
• several grades are distinguished by strength - from the least dense M-75, M-100 and M-150 to the most dense M300;
• for frost resistance there are markings from F15 to F50.

One of the types is fireclay bricks, which are made from special durable clay with the addition of certain impurities, including sand. The blocks are obtained by processing under high temperature (firing) refractory dust and special powder. There is general purpose fireclay bricks (ША, ША-5, ШБ-5, ШБ8), cupola, double-sided facing and many others intended for specialized construction.

There are also other types of this facing material - acid-resistant, backing, silicate and ceramic blocks.

Many manufacturers offer a fairly wide variety of brick sizes. On this basis, standard products can be:

• single options 250x120x65 mm;
• one and a half with dimensions 250 by 120 by 88 mm;
• double with dimensions 250 x 120 x 138 mm.

Facing brick can have dimensions smaller than 120 mm, since its main purpose is the aesthetic perception of the finished building or structure. Its mass may also differ. There are brick blocks that have other sizes due to the fact that they have differences in shape, for example, there are options for a triangular shape, with roundness, concave, convex, etc. As you can understand, there are different sizes of products to ensure diversity and exclusivity, which contributes to the imagination of the customer and the architect when working on the construction of the object.

From the above, it can be concluded that, depending on the size of the material and the manufacturing method, the brick has a different volume and specific gravity. The volumetric weight should be calculated using a special formula. The lightest is brick for facing works from 1200 to 1500 kg per cubic meter. For blocks with voids, this parameter varies from 130 to 1650 kg / m3. The heaviest are full-bodied options.

Specific gravity, in other words, is the density of the material from which the product is made. It depends on raw materials, their quality, production method, porosity. To calculate the specific gravity it is necessary to set the "net" volume. The normative value of the specific gravity for sand-lime brick is about 2000-2400 units. The clay product has a specific gravity of 1700 to 1900 kg / m3, refractory bricks are about two thousand units. The parameters considered are important both at the design stage and at the stage of the actual production of work, due to the fact that the quality, durability of the structure, its thermal conductivity and energy efficiency depend on it.

In order to determine the number of brick blocks and their weight parameters, it is important to determine the measurement methods, which can be volumetric, mass or mixed. As a rule, bricks are dispensed in pallets (special pallets), where from two hundred to three hundred and fifty bricks are placed. Dividing the weight of the pallet with brick by the weight of 1 piece. (mass method), you can easily find their total and vice versa. With this measurement, it is important to take into account the weight of the pallets themselves, which ranges from 18 to 40 kg.

The volumetric method is that, knowing the dimensions of one block and the dimensions of the entire pallet, it is also easy to calculate the number of products. The mixed method combines both of the previously discussed. Measuring the quantity is important when calculating for the purchase of building materials in a store, when paying for laying workers, when checking the compliance of the work performed with the existing project.

In the article, we considered only the main and most common types and types of brick products, their volumetric and specific gravity, and other parameters. When choosing this or that product, it is important to have a project developed by a specialist. It is best not to use even the most ordinary brick blocks on your own, without special knowledge.

You will learn more information about building bricks in the following video.