Brick mortar not meeting code

Celena Marie · Jan 10, 2025 3:39 pm

We are at lock up with our home and paid for a building inspection as we are concerned about the over all quality of our build. Among many things our brick motar exceeds 15mm code and is at 20 to 22mm in several sections.
What I would like to know is, does this affect the structural integrity of the home and what is the solution?
We have spent 20 months waiting for our home which is still not completed. I don't want to have it pulled apart and re-bricked.
Is there anyone else that has had this issue?

Dan Mil · Feb 16, 2025 9:18 pm

Celena Marie

We are at lock up with our home and paid for a building inspection as we are concerned about the over all quality of our build. Among many things our brick motar exceeds 15mm code and is at 20 to 22mm in several sections.
What I would like to know is, does this affect the structural integrity of the home and what is the solution?
We have spent 20 months waiting for our home which is still not completed. I don't want to have it pulled apart and re-bricked.
Is there anyone else that has had this issue?

Hi Celena Marie, we have the same issue our masonry has been installed outside of the minimum allowable tolerances. Mortar bed joints to brickwork deviate more than the allowable tolerance of +-3mm from specified thickness of a bed joint in areas around the electrical meter box. See Australian Standard AS 3700-2018 Masonry Structures Table 12.1 Tolerances in Masonry Construction. Let us know how you go with your builder as we're based in NSW and seeking legal advice on how to proceed.