October 2012 – Page 2

Brickwork – 45 Degree Corners

One of the things that really annoys me as I walk around is 45 degree bends in brick fences like this photo.

Bricks are meant to be laid so that they fully interlocked and this is a long way short of that.

I have even seen this type of corner on a house, where the joint will lead to penetration of water into the wall.

What this tells me is that someone:

Didn’t understand what can be done.
Planned the work poorly.
Tried to save money.
Employed dodgy bricklayers.

The photo on the left is what a proper 45 degree brick corner should look like.

It uses a special brick which is called a squint.

These brick are a special order, so they take time to be delivered, and they are more expensive……………….but they do make a much better job!

See Bricks for more posts on understanding brick work

Planning some building work in the garden? see Brick Fences

Wastewater Treatment ‘House’ – WIN !!

Would you like to live near a Sewage Treatment Plant?………….Well the 2 storey house in the centre of this picture is the Osprey Point Sewage Treatment Plant.

You can see from the photo how close it is to the houses in this upmarket New Jersey Retirement Village.

I have visited this plant and talked to the people in the houses and there is:

No Noise.

In fact people like living near the ‘Plant’ because there is a bit more of a separation from their ‘Neighbor’.

The link below will take you to the Google Maps Location if you want another look.

Osprey Dr
Upper Township, NJ 08230, USA

Show on Google Maps

The treatment plant is built by a company called Aqueonics in the USA.

For more Unusual houses go to What the………………….?

High Ceilings – Unexpected Effects

Quite a lot of people go for Higher Rooms because it does give a more impressive interior effect.

Something to bear in mind is that it can effect the external appearance of the house by making the windows look small.

This photo of a house under construction illustrates this. The additional courses of brickwork between the head of the window and the fascia board looks a bit incongruous.

The alternatives to deal with this for this single storey house are:

Make the windows taller.
Have Overhanging Eaves which brings the fascia lower.

With 2 storey houses the effects of the higher ceiling can be even more pronounced.

If you think you may go for higher ceilings it’s worth thinking about how the house will look from the outside. If the display house you saw has high ceilings its easy to check, otherwise you may need to see a drawing before you make a final decision.

The Design Section has more posts on planning your new house.

Or see the ‘Selection / Pre-Start Guide’

West Facing Solar Hot Water System?

If you are committed to sustainability then space on the North facing roof is at premium.

One option may be to look at putting the solar hot water system on a West facing roof.

This will mean you can maximise the space for north facing Photo Voltaic (PV) solar panels.

Although the solar hot water system will not be quite as efficient there are a couple of reasons why it is a worthwhile option.

If you check the solar alignment post you will see that its possible to get around 80% of the maximum efficiency compared with a North Facing system.
For most families the time when you will be using most hot water is the evening and early morning. The West facing system will have less time to lose heat before use than the North facing system.

I’m not saying West facing is best but it can be a good compromise.

Month: October 2012