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THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECTS JOURNAL. 



[April, 



NOTES ON BRICKWORK WITH EXAMPLES OF TALL 

 CHIMNEYS. 



Bricks are generally of two descriptions, named after tlie manner of 

 llieir manufacture eitlier " slop" or "sand" made stocks, tlie latter being 

 the generic name ; other names are given to distinguish the varieties 

 caused by excessive or deficient action of the fire in burning them, or 

 if being of inferior materials or manufacture, as pickings, seconds, 

 cutters, malms, clinkers, place, paviours, &c. The size of bricks made 

 from different clays vary considerably after burning, and atTects the 

 price as much as 10 per cent., tlie bricks being usually sold by the 

 thousand. The common method of comparison is to measure 4 bricks of 

 the standard of 12 inches high, being 3 inches to each course, and if they 

 only measure ll-J inches the proportion required to execute a rod cif 

 reduced brickwork will be as 4352 for the former to 4533 for the 

 latter, and so on. I am firmly of opinion, notwithstanding the nu- 

 merous machines described in your valuable Journal, that hand labour 

 ■will supersede them all as regards expedition and consequent economy, 

 as in one case it is admitted that when the clay is very irregular'a 

 pug mill is required to feed the machine, and the utmost gain alleged 

 by the use of machinery is 2s. (jd. per thousand. I think, liowever, 

 that the machine compressed bricks, even at the extra cost of 7s. per 

 1000, may, in some cases of extra quality being required, come into 

 use. In estimating the duty, bricks are measured dry, and in 1&35 the 

 exaction amounted to £395,000. The oppressive nature of this im- 

 post is forcibly put by the case of a road surveyor who, at the Sessions 

 of the East Riding of York, stated that government had granted leave 

 to make bricks duty free for repairs in parishes where stone could 

 not be obtained. 



I cannot forego the pleasure of extracting the following remarks 

 from the Preface to the Supplement of Dr. Ure's Dictionary of Arts, 

 Manufactures and Mines. Oct. 1844. 



"The incessant and vexatious espionage of the excise is a bar to 

 all invention in every art under its control. From my long experience 

 in the conducting of arts and manufactures, I feel wairanted to declare 

 that the excise system is totally incompatible with their healthy 

 growth, and is in itself the fruitful parent of fraud, perjury, theft, and 

 occasionally murder. The sooner this portion of the revenue, so op- 

 pressively, so expensively, and so offensively collected, is replaced by 

 an equitable tax on property, the better for the welfare of this great 

 country. In concluding a very extensive survey of the great branches 

 of our national industry, this vile obstacle to their progressive growth 

 became so manifest, that it would have been pusillanimous to shrink 

 from the task of pointing out the magnitude of the evil." To talk of 

 smoke nuisances and state of the dwellings of the poor, and this impost 

 remain, is hollow cant. 



But to return to the execution of brickwork, considerable difTerence 

 of opinion exists as to the application of grouting and the use of 

 water. One party says in his specification — " 1st Every fourth course 

 to be well grouted with lime and sand, and the rest of the work to be 

 ■well bedded, and all the joints closely flushed up with mortar. 2ndly. 

 The joints not to exceed | of an inch in thickness; the mortar to be 

 mixed in such proportions, according to the strength of the lime, as 

 will make good strong mortar, using as little w»ter as practicable. 

 3rdly. Bricks to be sound, hard, well burnt and well shaped stocks, 

 and equal to the sample exhibited, and the best in point of colour and 

 shape to be selected for the exterior work, and attention to be paid 

 that these be of one uniform colour and general appearance. The 

 bricks to be bedded round without striking after (hey are once bedded. 

 The mortar to be sufficiently thin to enable to flush the joints up full 

 and round without grouting. No bats to be used, and no grouting 

 shall be used in any part of the work. Mortar to be composed of 1 of 

 lime measured dry to 3 of sand, mixed in a pug mill with as small a 

 quantity of water as may be sufficient to reduce it to tlie consistency 

 required, but no water shall be added to the mortar on any account 

 after it has once passed through the mill in water. To grind the lime 

 in water with edge stones to a thin smooth paste before mixing with 

 the sand in the pug mill." The various requirements and modes as 

 above set forth must influence the price. The wages of bricklayers 

 are 5s. per day and labourers 3s. in London. The price of labour 

 varies from 22s. to 35s. per rod of brickwork, arising from the thick- 

 ness of the walls or height of the building, as in a building 70 feet high 

 one labourer will be required to a bricklayer, in the middle 1^ to 1, at 

 the top 2 or 2i to 1, which I think would be the prudent limit of 

 manual labour, beyond 70 feet I would recommend to be employed 

 horse power. 



I have attempted to keep an account of the number of bricks and 

 yards of lime and sand on a large contract, and this was my result, 

 2,323,000 bricks, 1202 cubic yards of sand, and 1630 cubic yards of 



various sorts of lime, grey, white and blue; but from cement being 

 used in some parts of the work, and pit sand instead of all being from 

 the river, the account is not quite correct. In another case for labour 

 in laying 244,000 bricks in a bridge there was paid £97 2s. Sd. Both 

 cases being to a certain extent failures shew the necessity of having 

 a standard computed to calculate from. In estimating for works, flues 

 and fireplaces are not deducted, nor timber built into walls, and 2 in. 

 are allowed for bedding timbers on walls. The foregoing allowances 

 of bricks are sufficient to include waste. 



On railways brickwork is computed by the yard — the following is 

 the weight of a cubic yard in cement and in mortar. 



Ton cwt. qr. lb. Ton cwt. qr. lb. 



334 Dry brick3 .. 1 2 1 20 .. .. 1 2 1 20 



Sand, ivater and cement 6 2 4 Mortar 4 18 



These calculations show that brickwork in cement is -^ heavier 

 than when in mortar. 

 Approximate estimate per rod, mortar, including waste— 



rf s. d. 



4160 stocks, at 36s 7 a 4 



U cubic yard of limp, at lOs.ed. .. 13 I 



Si ditto sand, at Is. '.Id. .... 6 1 



Labour .. 1 16 



Scaff»Wing 2 



If in cement 49s. extra. 



Scaffolding poles are placed 10 feet apart, and are from 36 feet to 

 45 feet long, and cost about 2id. per foot. Putlogs are Gi ft. long and 

 3 in. square, cost Is. each. Ledgers are the same as poles, but laid 

 horizontal at each scaffold height of about 5i ft. Scaffold boards are 

 9X IJand in 14 and 15 feet lengths. A coil of rope of 2 cwt. 1 qr. 10 lb. 

 will make 44 cords. For large buildings round poles are giving place 

 to squared timber for scaffolding. 



Bond of iron hoop has been used lately, and costs about IJrf. per 

 yard, and four strips are used in the thickness of each wall at the 

 foundation and under each floor, it is tarred and sanded before used. 

 Exterior pointing tuck, or edge cut, 7s. per square of 100 feet, and is 

 charged extra. In some parts of the country brickwork is charged 

 by the superficial yard of 9 in. thick ; in London it is charged by the 

 rod of 272 superficial feet IJ brick thick. The price varies of course 

 as the distance from the kiln, which may be taken at sixpence per 

 mile per additional mile. The maximum and minimum vary fully 

 fifty per cent., say from 12s. 6rf. to 24s. per cubic yard of brickwork. 

 On railways brickwork is always measured by the yard, and charged, 

 including digging of foundation, scaflbld and centering, pumping water, 

 &c., and so rigid have I known this applied that, in the case of a road 

 under the line, the earth under the arch in the line of boundary has 

 been disallowed and included in the measurement of the bridge for 

 brickwork. 



I was written to respecting chimneys by a party who is about to 

 build a case for a stand-pipe or syphon to obtain a head of water in 

 the projected water-works at Hamburgh, and in the course of enquiry 

 obtained the particulars of those named below ; and I here call atten- 

 tion to the skill displayed in the tower at Elswick, which stands very 

 exposed on the brow of a hill, the taper looks quite parabolic — or if 

 the term "entasis" is better liked, I will use it, as being more general 

 than the former term. The whole of the examples are circular, and 

 were built from the iiiteror without scaffolding. I am fully convinced 

 the circular plan is better than the square or octagon as regards strengti), 

 and even perhaps beauty of appearance. I give below the dimensions 

 of three stalks of great height. 



Dimensions of the chimney at Lee and Burnett's Alkali Works, at 

 Felling, near Newcastle-on-Tyne. Extreme height from foundation 

 to underside of top 212 feet. Extreme diameter at bottom of founda- 

 tion 27 ft. 6 in. The thickness at bottom of footings is 6 ft. 6 in., and 

 gradually diminishes to 3J bricks the thickness of the first 3G feet in 

 height, next SO feet 3 bricks, 50 feet 2^ bricks, 30 feet 2 bricks, and 

 10 feet li brick. The foundation is hard clay. 



Dimensions of circular chimney at Friars' Grove Chemical Works, 

 near Newcastle-on-Tyne. Begun Oct. 23, 1632; finished July 27, 

 1833. Total number of bricks used 313,000. Foundation, clay; and 

 the chimney stands on a pillar dyke, the coal being wrought in the 

 vicinity. Outside diameter at bottom of foundation 27 ft. 6 in. ; in- 

 side 14 ft. 3 in. Extreme height 254 ft. 9 in. Thickness of walls, 

 first 24 ft. 8 in. 3i bricks, 107 feet 3 bricks, 53 feet 2i bricks, 46 ft. 

 6 in. 2 bricks, 12 feet l.J brick, stone top 6 feet, an uniform taper of 

 li in. to the yard. 



Shot tower at Elswick, built 1797. Extreme height 195 ft. 4 in. 

 Parallel without taper for two-thirds of its height; it has a circular 

 stone stair in the interior, projecting 2 ft. 6 in. from the wall, of 305 





