A guide to standard brick sizes and bonds
Knowing standard brick sizes becomes a crucial skill for architects and builders when designing. Bricks have been used as a building material in construction from ancient times. They signify strength and durability through their load bearing abilities.
Typically bricks were made from clay due to the availability and versatility of this material during earlier times. The clay was moulded into desired shapes and then either sun-dried or fired in kilns at high temperatures in order to harden them and enhance their properties.
Due to advancements in technology, we now have bricks made from other materials like concrete and glass.
When it comes to standard brick sizes, there are quite a few more variations than you may have initially thought. Not only do standard brick sizes vary from country to country, we also have different ways of building with bricks, special bricks, different brick bonds, different mortar options, and different ways of determining brick dimensions. We will take a closer look at all of these factors in the following post.
Scroll to the end to download this article as a handy PDF guide!
Brick Terminology
BED: The top and bottom faces of a brick.
HEADER: The shorter faces of a brick.
STRETCHER: The longer faces of a brick.
ARRIS: The edges of a brick.
FROGGED: Bricks with indentations on one or more faces.
PERFORATED: Bricks with holes passing through them.
UNIT: An individual brick.
COURSE: A single horizontal layer of bricks laid in a wall.
WYTHE/LEAF: A single vertical layer of bricks of one unit thickness within a wall. You will find that multiple wythes are often used in thicker walls to provide structural support and insulation. In such cases, the exterior facing wall is called ‘Outer leaf’ and the interior facing wall is called ‘Inner leaf’.
MORTAR: This is used as an adhesive to bind units (bricks) together and provide stability to the construction. It typically consists of crushed up sand, cement and water.
BED JOINT: This is the horizontal layer of mortar on which a unit (brick) is laid.
HEAD JOINT: This is the vertical layer of mortar between the end faces of adjacent units (bricks) in a wall.
Brick Orientations
Standard Brick Sizes
The standard brick sizes mentioned in this post are the true dimensions of the brick not accounting for the mortar.
If we were accounting for the mortar, it would be called the nominal brick size.
As mentioned earlier, each country has its own set of standard brick sizes and dimensions:
UK
A standard UK brick size is 215mm long x 102.5mm wide x 65mm high according to British Standards.
Brick Dimension Tables Explained (firstinarchitecture.co.uk)
USA
Australia
A standard Australian brick size is 230mm long x 110mm wide x 76mm high.
For the purpose of this post, however, we will be focusing on UK standards.
Special Bricks
Special bricks are used to create different designs, shapes, features and detailing. There are a few British Standard special bricks that are widely available, these include:
Angle and Cant
Arch
Radial
Bonding
Bullnose, Double Bullnose
Capping
Coping
Plinth
Slips
Sill
Rebated
Cuboid
Soldier, Pistol Soldier
It is also possible to get non standard bespoke bricks from different brick suppliers.
Brick Bonds
The most popular brick bond patterns in the UK are:
Stretcher Bond
Stack Bond
English Bond
Flemish Bond
Header Bond
American Common bond
English Cross bond
English Garden Wall bond
Flemish Garden Wall bond (Sussex bond)
Monk bond
Herringbone
Types of Brick Mortar
Mortar joints can be finished with different profiles. The purpose of the finishing joints is to ensure rain is deflected away from the joint, but also there is an aesthetic element to the joint design too.
The most commonly used mortar joints in the UK are:
Recessed (not suited to exposed areas)
Weathered Struck
Bucket handle or curved recessed
Flush
Each profile serves both functional and aesthetic purposes, contributing to the overall look and durability of the brickwork.
Helpful links
You can read more in detail about brick bonds and mortar joints in our Detail Post on Brick Bonds and Patterns. Be sure to check it out: Detail Post: Brick Bonds and Patterns
We also have a Free Brick Texture Pack that you can download to use in your architectural visualisations: Free Brick Texture Pack
Pinterest Board
Here are our Brick related Pinterest boards to help inspire you. Feel free to check them out.
https://www.pinterest.co.uk/1starchitecture/brick-architecture/
https://www.pinterest.co.uk/DetailLibrary/brick-details/
You might also be interested in:
We also have lots of incredible brick content. Be sure to check it out!
Download the Guide!
Download this helpful article as a pdf to keep for reference later!
Conclusion
In conclusion, understanding standard brick sizes, orientations, special bricks, brick bonds, and mortar options is crucial for architects, builders, and all those involved in construction.
By mastering these basics you will be able to confidently work with this versatile building material and ensure that your brick structures will stand the test of time.
We hope this post has been a good starting point to help encourage you.
Thank you for reading :)
Author
Written by Emma Walshaw, Architectural Technologist and founder of First In Architecture and Detail Library. Emma has written a number of books about construction and architectural detailing.
I love this blog, thanks for publishing these articles. It’s so interesting to compare the UK approach to architecture and construction with the US practices I know.
Here in North Carolina, we traditionally use lots of brick because the soil has a very high percentage of (red) clay. But in 35 years, I’ve never seen a frogged version. Our brick always has three cores.
Another interesting variation is the size. We differentiate “modular” (7.625 inches long) from “standard” (8 inches long). Ironically, standard is almost never used. All the buildings I measure or design use modular so that the six orientations (stretcher, header, rowlock, shiner, soldier, sailor) all course without cuts. I can’t even find any local brick suppliers that sell the standard size. The only time I might see it is where longer veneer stretchers are needed to match larger 16″L CMU units behind and there aren’t any other orientations.
We’re quickly loosing our brick traditions here. The labor is expensive and the detailing quite complicated with modern concerns for building envelope issues. Properly done, long, thermally broken brick ties are necessary to reach beyond 4 inches of rigid insulation and a healthy 2 inch air/water cavity behind the brick. And, contrary to the general public’s perception, brick doesn’t stop bulk water, so a quality water resistant barrier (WRB) is still required back behind the cavity on the face of framing. It’s hard to coordinate this with the brick ties.
Thank you Steve, really interesting to hear your comments. Much appreciated. Emma
Hello, Emma. Your article on brick is a fine guide to helping me learn about brickwork for my study of Chicago’s architecture history. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.
Thank you :)
Hi, Emma.
A nice, clear summary – thanks!
Can I ask, are there any traditional types of UK bricks that are no longer made? If so, is it easier to find reclaimed originals, or have bespoke ones made?
What would be the likely cost of each?
Thanks.
Hi. Thanks for sharing