The cost of building a brick house

In the field of individual construction, brick houses occupy a leading position. And this is not surprising, because this building material has sufficient strength, reliability, durability and, most importantly, it is environmentally friendly. That is why most private developers choose these products for the construction of the walls of their home. But on sale there are many varieties of bricks that differ in technical and operational characteristics. The cost of building a brick house depends on the choice of this material. From our article you will not only learn about the price of different types of stones, but also find the characteristics of each type, its application features, advantages and disadvantages.

Varieties of material

To understand which brick is better for building a house, you need to consider the properties and characteristics of each of them. The basis for the manufacture of most bricks is clay. It is kneaded with water in the required consistency, mixed with various additives and additives. After molding the products, they are dried at a temperature of 200°C. The material is then fired in a kiln at higher temperatures, i.e. sintered to a ceramic state. That is why this type of brick is called ceramic. Without firing, the raw stone does not have those high technical characteristics that are characteristic of the finished product.

Worth knowing: for the manufacture of clinker bricks, special refractory clay and firing at higher temperatures are used. It is because of this that it is the most durable and dense wall material.

However, there are types of bricks that are not made from clay. For example, silica sand and lime are used to produce silicate stone. The same can be said about hyper-pressed brick, it also does not contain clay. In fact, it is a durable stone.

During the construction of a brick house for the construction of its various structural parts, the following types of stones can be used:

• Red ceramic brick (ordinary).
• Facing ceramic stone.
• silica products.
• Hyper pressed material.
• Clinker brick.

Ordinary ceramic elements

The construction of the walls of a brick house is most often carried out from this material. Everyone knows the red clay ceramic stone. On sale you can find single elements with dimensions of 25 cm x 12 cm x 6.5 cm, one and a half products with dimensions of 25 cm x 12 cm x 8.8 cm, as well as double blocks with a thickness of 13.8 cm.

Also, these elements are corpulent and hollow. The price of a full-bodied stone is slightly higher, since more material is used to make it. The surface of the product can be ribbed for better adhesion to the solution or rough.

If you want to know which brick is better to build a house from, then solid elements are more suitable for the construction of load-bearing structures (walls, columns, foundations), since their strength and bearing capacity are higher. As for the hollow stone, it is usually used for arranging non-bearing walls and partitions, and can also act as wall filling in frame housing construction.

The price of the material is 0.17-0.19 c.u. /PCS. Hollow stones are cheaper. A double ceramic block can be bought at a price of 0.19-0.26 USD. a piece.

Cladding elements

If the construction of a brick house will be carried out from ordinary stone, then in order to give beauty to the building, it is better to overlay it with facing bricks. If strict requirements are not imposed on the appearance of an ordinary stone, then their appearance is very important for facing products. The stone should be smooth, without chips or cracks. In addition, the specified geometric dimensions and the correct shape of the product are important.

Important: in order for the built house to be beautiful and durable, its facade is best made of facing stone, which has high moisture resistance, frost resistance, strength, wear resistance and beauty.

In addition, this stone, due to its high performance characteristics, is successfully used for the construction of load-bearing structures, foundations, heavy fences and when performing restoration work.

The construction of facades and some structural parts of the house is advantageous to carry out from the front stone due to its many advantages:

1. The product is not subject to fading.
2. On sale you can find stones of different shades and textures, which greatly expands the decorative possibilities of the material.
3. Low water absorption (6-14%) makes it an ideal facing option.
4. The product can withstand up to 50 freezing cycles.
5. Low thermal conductivity (0.3-0.5) guarantees the preservation of heat in the house.
6. Sufficiently high strength (1300-1460 kg per m³) allows the material to be used for the manufacture of load-bearing structures at home.

Among the shortcomings it is worth mentioning the following:

• If we compare ceramic stone with its silicate counterpart, then it is not economically feasible to build ordinary walls from it, since the cost of building a house from front brick will turn out to be very high. This product is more suitable for cladding buildings and masonry of individual structural parts of the building.

It is also worth knowing that there are two types of facing products:

• A decorative or textured block that is used when facing the walls of a house, for making beautiful fences and in interior decoration.
• Shaped products of various configurations, from which you can make decorative details of facades, pillars, columns, arches, cornices, pilasters, gazebos. They are also suitable for wall decoration in the interior and decorative design of fireplaces.

The cost of facing wall products is in the range of 0.2-0.9 USD. for one brick.

silicate products

Since the manufacturing technology of this stone does not provide for firing, its price is the most reasonable among piece wall products. That is why building a box at home will cost the cheapest.

Silicate stone consists of 90% quartz sand and 10% lime and various additives. The hardening of the block occurs due to a chemical reaction during the slaking of lime. To speed up the curing process, steaming in an autoclave under pressure at a temperature of 200°C is used.

Important: white silicate stone is a product without pigment additives, but in addition to it, products of other colors can be found on sale.

The silicate block can also be ordinary and facial, full-bodied and hollow, one and a half and single. In addition, there are elements with a smooth and rusticated surface.

Among the advantages of this material, it is worth listing the following:

1. From this stone, you can build houses of unlimited number of storeys, since the strength of the material is very high and is in the range of 75-300 marks.
2. A wide range of colors and surface textures allows you to get beautiful buildings.
3. Affordable price is the most important advantage for many private developers.
4. The stone has high soundproof qualities.

Among the disadvantages of silicate, it is worth mentioning the following:

1. The material is very hygroscopic, so it cannot be used for laying foundations, basements and hydraulic structures.
2. Due to the high density, the stone has an increased thermal conductivity (0.39-0.8), so the walls of the house must be additionally insulated or thick enough. As a result, you will have to make a massive foundation, which will not save on construction. That is why this material is best used for arranging internal walls and partitions, as well as building cladding. But it is unprofitable to mount monolithic external walls from it.
3. Silicate stone does not like chemical influences and elevated temperatures, so it is not suitable for laying furnaces.
4. Low density, which is in the range of 1500-1950 kg / m³.
5. Low frost resistance - only 15-50 cycles. Therefore, your house will not stand for as long as you would like.

The price of a silicate ordinary stone is 0.11-0.16 USD. for one block. As for its facing silicate counterpart, it can be bought at 0.2-0.6 USD. a piece.

Hyper pressed brick

To decide which brick to build a house from, it is worth studying the properties and features of a hyper-pressed product. In fact, it is not a brick, but a concrete stone, since it does not contain clay. This product is 85% limestone, 10% of its composition is cement, and only 5% is dye. The material is produced by semi-dry hyper-pressing. According to the characteristics of the product, they are not inferior to their ceramic counterpart.

As a rule, such blocks are used for cladding the walls of buildings, basement floors, finishing fireplaces and stoves, as well as decorative interior finishes.

This is a very good building material, because it has a number of advantages:

• Impressive frost resistance (150-300 cycles) makes it particularly durable and strong.
• Low water absorption (no more than 6%) contributes to the fact that the stone can be used in conditions of high humidity.
• A large abundance of colors and textures of this product guarantees a spectacular and presentable finish.
• Depending on the additives used, the strength of the material can be in the range of 1000-4000 kg/m³.

This product has a big drawback - a high price compared to its ceramic counterpart. Therefore, it is wasteful and unprofitable to use it for ordinary masonry walls, since the erected house will be very expensive. Also, the disadvantages include the high thermal conductivity of the material, which is equal to 0.43-0.9. You can purchase hyper-pressed brick at a price of 0.29 to 0.38 USD. a piece.

Clinker

This building material is made from a special refractory clay in the firing process at temperatures above 1200°C. Thanks to this, there are no voids and cavities in the product. It acquires a high density and becomes monolithic. Thanks to the use of special additives, elements of different colors are on sale. You can also purchase products with a relief surface for facing the walls of the house.

Clinker bricks are single, one and a half and double. It is used for cladding houses, finishing fireplaces and stoves, laying fences, fences, gazebos, lining outdoor chimneys, and the material is also suitable for arranging garden paths, barbecues and outdoor stoves.

Among its advantages it is worth mentioning the following:

• Increased density and strength guarantee a long service life of up to 100 years.
• High frost resistance (up to 100 cycles), low water absorption, chemical resistance greatly expand the scope of the material.
• High aesthetic values.
• Thanks to the abundance of colors and textures, you can easily choose a stone for decorating your house outside or inside.
• The material has high soundproofing characteristics.
• Fences, columns, arches, gazebos, decorative elements of facades can be laid out of clinker stone, used in the interior and for finishing fireplaces.
• The high strength of the material (2100 kg / m³) allows it to be used for laying the supporting structures of the house (foundations, columns).

The disadvantages include the fact that clinker is the most expensive type of brick. In addition, the material has a high thermal conductivity due to its high density, therefore, when facing a house with this stone, additional insulation must be laid. Clinker brick costs from 0.46 c.u. up to 1.6 c.u. a piece.