If you want brick you really need to go and visit one of the brick manufacturers display centres where they have display walls built with the various bricks.
Make sure you look at the bricks in the builders standard range first. If you are happy with a brick from this range you will save thousands of dollars compared with the ‘premium’ brick.
Looking at a couple of square metres of wall gives you a much better idea than looking at a couple of bricks in the builders office.
Seeing a larger panel may also stop you going for one of the short term trends such as brightly coloured bricks.
When you are at the brick manufacturers check what colour mortar they use in the test wall as this will probably be the best colour for your house.
This diagram indicates a charged drainage system. These are sometimes called either a “wet” or a “pressure” system.
With this type of system a section of the pipe always remains full unlike a Conventional System.
As the pipes are under pressure it is essential all the joints in above ground and underground pipework are fully watertight
Advantages
A neater appearance than having pipes above ground.
Allows you to discharge water at a height above the ground level at the down pipe.
Disadvantages
It is more likely to block as the flow through the pipes can be fairly slow and the low points can collect silt. Silt will get deposited at flow rates below 0.6m/sec which will be the situation for most rainfall events.
It is also more difficult to unblock.
Can cost more with excavation and additional inspection fittings .
Potential for mosquito breeding in water unless appropriate screes are installed.
The vast majority of new houses will have a conventional (sometimes called a Gravity, or Open system) storm water drainage system discharging to either:
Public Surface Water Drain – Typically in Eastern States
Soakwells on Sandy Sites – Mainly in WA
With a conventional system like this the pipes are either vertical or at a slope towards the discharge point.
A feature of this system is that when there is no flow all the pipes are empty.
Advantages
Simple and inexpensive to design and construct.
If well designed, and constructed, the speed of flow in the pipes will prevents silting and subsequent blockage.
Disadvantages
This type of system can look very untidy when taking water to a Rainwater Tank that is some way from many of the downspouts (It results in lengths of pipes suspended in mid air)
Difficult to transfer water to a discharge point that is above the ground level of the building, although below the gutter level. A problem often encountered on demolition and rebuild projects and battleaxe blocks.
If you are planning a rainwater tank or are having problems with getting storm water to a suitable discharge point you could consider a Closed System
It’s important to make sure you are getting the right type of pipes and fittings that will be underground…..you don’t want to be digging up you garden, or paths, in case of blockages.
Pipes
Some plumbers will want to use, and bury, 90 mm diameter rainwater pipes, basically plastic downpipes.
You need to make sure you are getting as a minimum 100 mm PVC pipes rated as DWV.(Stands for Drainage, Waste and Vent).
The reasons are:
The 90 mm pipe is thin walled and can be easily deformed once buried. This means you lose capacity without realising it. The DWV is a much thicker and thus stronger pipe.
Although the increase in pipe diameter is fairly small the flow capacity of the larger pipe is over 40% higher. That makes a difference in storm conditions.
Pipes are normally marked at 1m intervals with the type, manufacturer, nominal diameter, material, and the Standards reference (AS/NZS1260).
One of the problems during a new house construction is that concrete tend to fill underground pipes, causing blockage.
A hydraulic impact cutter can remove concrete in drains and sewers.
Other problems include leaking or burst pipes caused by corrosion, tree roots, and collapsed pipes.
Roots tend to grow toward the direction of the water so a loose connecting or weak point in the underground pipes triggers tree roots to wrap around them until they burst.
That’s why the design of the pipe system is crucial to ensure a problem-free plumbing.
They should be away from trees and other structures to avoid these problems.
A qualified and experienced plumber will detect common leak indicators in the underground pipes and repair them. They’ll test the repair and fill the trench.
Bends
Bend refers to a term for any change or offset of direction in the pipes, which includes elbows.
They’re fabricated as per piping specification requirement.
Elbows come in standard or pre-fabricated and are available off the shelf.
Bends are available in 4 different angles for DFW pipes as follows: 15 degrees, 30 degrees, 45 degrees and 90 degrees.
Although 90 degree bends are available, I would NOT install them underground due to the blockage risk….. If you need a 90 degree change of direction underground:
For a drain or a sewer use a junction pit.
For a charged (pressure) rainwater system use two 45 degree bends with an inspection ‘T’ in the middle.
The purpose of the outer skin of a building is to keep moisture out of the house structure.
A damp proof course, in the brick veneer example shown below, has two purposes:
It prevents moisture from the ground rising up through the external brick skin. (This moisture can cause effervescence which stains the brickwork)
It ensures that moisture that penetrates the brickwork runs down the wall and is discharged to the outside through the weep holes.
The DPC, which is usually polyethylene, should be the full width of the brickwork. The other edge of the DPC should be fixed to the face of the bottom plate of the wall frame.
The drawing shows a DPC 75mm (one brick) above the ground. This is an absolute minimum and 150mm is preferred.
Double Brick is the most common method of construction in WA.
Construction consists of two panels (sometimes called leaves) of masonry with a cavity between them. The panels are connected by steel ties at regular intervals.
A better description would be Structural Masonry, Cavity Construction. which also includes using limestone, rendered brick and concrete block for the external face, and brick or concrete block for the internal leaf. (The photo shows a brick external leaf connected to a concrete block inner leaf by a wire tie)
The purpose of the cavity between the outside leaf of brick and the inside leaf is so that moisture doesn’t penetrate into the home. In more sustainable homes this cavity is partially or fully filled with insulation.
Internal walls are usually a single brick thickness and generally use a 2nds brick or concrete block that is plastered or lined using a lining board.
Advantages
It is extremely durable requiring very little maintenance.
The mass of the brickwork can help moderate the internal temperature of the dwelling
You can place a heavy fixing anywhere on the walls.
A Masonry veneer structure has two main components:
The Frame. Can be either Timber or Steel. This is the main structural component of the house supporting the roof, and if required the upper floor. This is usually ‘wrapped’ as in photo above.
The Masonry Veneer. Although this looks solid it really only supports itself, and relies on ties to the frame to keep it stable. It provides a weatherproof ‘skin’ to the building.
So Why
Gives a solid look to the house.
Lower cost than solid brick
The prefabricated frame allows the frame to be erected quickly allowing the builder to get the structure weatherproof.
Contraction Joints have been previously described in Pavement Joints 1
The second most common form of Joint is the Expansion, or Isolation Joint.
Although concrete does shrink as it cures, in hot weather it will expand.
Unless an allowance is made for the expansion the concrete paving can push foundations. In long runs of concrete it can create a hump in the paving like the photo below.
The following sketch shows a typical Expansion Joint against a building.
Holes are drilled into the concrete and steel ‘dowel bars are grouted in, so they all face the same direction. In order to stop the concrete holding onto the dowel and stopping the expansion the dowel is fitted with a close fitting plastic sleeve both the joint and the end cap are also fitted with a compressible foam.
For more posts on on getting your paths and driveways correct see Concreting
