Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Oct 28, 2007 3:10 pm Hi everyone,
I have a question about the brick/mortar work on our new house. I am referring to a single brick wall of our garage. This wall has 2 fixed windows in it. Is it 'normal' for a single brick wall to leak water? - water coming through mortar joins and trickling down the wall. Should the bricks look wet at all? We have render under the windows and they constantly absorb water and look wet. Is it okay to be able to see 'outside' through a mortar join? I would really appreciate some advice. Thanks, Sue Re: Brick/mortar question 2Oct 28, 2007 3:17 pm I don't know, but you would assume that the bricks and mortar would get a little wet, but I don't think it should be able to get through to the other side.
Are you sure it's not an expansion joint that will be filled? I don't think the mortar should be letting water in. Imagine if it was doing it into the house wall cavities - moisture, mould, rot, etc... Ray. Second Time 'Round Re: Brick/mortar question 3Oct 28, 2007 3:30 pm Bricks are clay and therefore porous. You'll notice the bottom row of bricks are below the level of the floor and you will no doubt have weep holes. Both of these things allow water to escape to the OUTSIDE of your home.
However, if just a little bit of water from the outside is causing the problem you experience, something is definitely wrong. I'm not sure whether the mortar is porous but it probably is as well. Some cheap builders don't have the first course of bricks below floor level in the garage. Customers of these builders who use sprinklers (with some of the water spraying on the brick wall) often complain their garage gets flooded because the water escapes from the wall into the garage and outside the wall when it hits the slab. Brick/mortar question 4Oct 28, 2007 3:42 pm Thanks for you input.
It's definately not the sprinkler or the expansion joint. There are no weep holes in this wall. It is not plaster lined inside - just bare brick - hence how I can see the water running down the wall. I think I have worked out how to post pictures, hopefully this will work and you can see what I mean... Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ I realise that bricks and mortar are porous materials and they've told me to expect some dampness when the rain is heavy, but....I think this is too much. Re: Brick/mortar question 5Oct 28, 2007 5:55 pm In one word
NO!!!! and the rest of my words That looks like very poor workmanship. With a shortage of brickies of late - Id' say that you've had a very inexperienced worker on site. Steve Re: Brick/mortar question 6Oct 28, 2007 6:01 pm I'm not an expert, far from it, but here are my thoughts.
With a brick veneer or double brick house, the outside wall is referred to as the wet wall and the inside wall as the dry wall. If it rains for an extended period then the bricks would absorb water and the inside of the walls will be wet. However, I would not expect to be able to see through the brick's mortar lines to the outside (unless the house has aged and some craking has occured). Just my three cents worth (inflation!). Cheers, Casa Demolition August 2009, Construction Started September 2009, Completed December 2010 Brick/mortar question 7Oct 28, 2007 6:19 pm Thank you all so much for your opinions!!
We think it is VERY bad workmanship too. This is a new house, built last year! I guess I just really wanted to know if I was right to be complaining about this or if I was just being picky. Now what to do about it....they have sprayed a waterproofing agent over the bricks outside and it HAS helped. The water does not run down the wall anymore, but you can still see it seeping through the mortar, especially on the render under the windows. It is a "fact" that behind those brick piers, either side of the windows, there is very little mortar in the joins. I went back through photos taken during construction and, after this problem came to light, put 2 and 2 together to work out why it was leaking. Also the fact that I can see daylight through 2 joins, in particular, tells me that there is very little mortar in the rest of the wall either. I have asked for them to be re-done and was told that the "Brickie will be here this week" - that was 6 weeks ago and I have neither seen the Brickie or the Building Supervisor since. Re: Brick/mortar question 8Oct 28, 2007 6:34 pm how frustrating jamiet, I was sorry to read about your brick saga. fingers crossed they fix it, as they should. it is such ** workmanship. in your last photo, is that a redback spider you have hiding at the bottom?
Helen Re: Brick/mortar question 9Oct 28, 2007 6:43 pm sueau Thank you all so much for your opinions!! We think it is VERY bad workmanship too. This is a new house, built last year! I guess I just really wanted to know if I was right to be complaining about this or if I was just being picky. Now what to do about it....they have sprayed a waterproofing agent over the bricks outside and it HAS helped. The water does not run down the wall anymore, but you can still see it seeping through the mortar, especially on the render under the windows. It is a "fact" that behind those brick piers, either side of the windows, there is very little mortar in the joins. I went back through photos taken during construction and, after this problem came to light, put 2 and 2 together to work out why it was leaking. Also the fact that I can see daylight through 2 joins, in particular, tells me that there is very little mortar in the rest of the wall either. I have asked for them to be re-done and was told that the "Brickie will be here this week" - that was 6 weeks ago and I have neither seen the Brickie or the Building Supervisor since. The fact that the builder said the "brickie will be here this week" and six weeks has passed indicates that the builder also thinks it is sub-standard (or they are very forgetful). Demolition August 2009, Construction Started September 2009, Completed December 2010 Brick/mortar question 10Oct 28, 2007 8:44 pm Maylands Manor,
It does indeed look like a red back spider (Lord knows the gap there is big enough for one) - not sure what it is though... Casa2, The Builder 'knows' it's substandard and they don't want to fix it and probably won't. I think they are deliberately being forgetful.... I feel like I've nearly exhausted all avenues - they've worn me down. I don't really know what to do from here. I've spoken to BACV (Building Advice and Conciliation Victoria) and they advised me to 'write' to them and give them 14 days to fix and advise them that if they didn't comply then I would take it further. They said 9/10 times the Builder will remedy the problem before the 14 days are up. I wrote to them and gave them 28 days......just a waste of time really. And to take it further...well the BACV want a written complaint, copies of all plans, contracts, correspondence, photos etc. - You all know how much paperwork is involved in that! I mean, I'm not sure how big the problem is and is it really worth all the trouble. All I know is that I am NOT happy with it. Why can't they just send someone to have a look and give you advice and then, if need be, gather the necessary documents.... Sue Re: Brick/mortar question 11Oct 28, 2007 8:51 pm Hi Sueau,
It looks ** to me but I'm no expert. Who was your builder? I wonder if they want their name associated with that work? And I wonder if anyone here was considering building with them? Fi has moved in!! Re: Brick/mortar question 12Oct 28, 2007 10:04 pm brittany Hi Sueau, It looks ** to me but I'm no expert. Who was your builder? I wonder if they want their name associated with that work? And I wonder if anyone here was considering building with them? Here you are..** KING. https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?t=2928 Brick/mortar question 13Oct 29, 2007 3:22 pm I had a visit from the Building Supervisor today - what a surprise!
He said he would go and see the Brickie and get him to come and attend to problems....we'll see what happens. From past experience, I'm not holding my breath, but I DO have my fingers crossed all the same. He hasn't forgotten about me afterall. Sue Re: Brick/mortar question 14Oct 29, 2007 4:48 pm The single brick wall of our garage has never ever leaked water.. even in torrential rain. Re: Brick/mortar question 15Oct 29, 2007 7:05 pm It looks to me like the plastic that goes under the windows to direct the water outside isn't there... does that seem true in real life?? Re: Brick/mortar question 16Oct 30, 2007 8:36 am parker It looks to me like the plastic that goes under the windows to direct the water outside isn't there... does that seem true in real life?? I was going to ask that question too! This is an image from my site, you can clearly see the black plastic thing under every window... Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Sue, is it only the window area that's leaking? I would check other areas as well if possible... Re: Brick/mortar question 17Oct 30, 2007 9:22 am The black plastic is called a flashing (i think) and it is designed to hang straight down from your window behind the brickwork.
If you were to look at it in x-ray just under the window frame you would see bricks, flashing, sisalation (silver paper), studs (wood or metal) and then plaster. It is not designed to keep the water out as such. Does the window have drainage holes? Are they blocked up? <edit> Looked at the pics again...no drainage holes forget that! A tube of silastic is all that is going to fix this up I think. Maybe the rake of the bricks is not steep enough away from the window?? Either it needs to be fixed. Brick/mortar question 18Oct 30, 2007 1:03 pm There is no black plastic.
It is a single brick wall of the garage. The window frames DO have weep holes, but they were draining inside! The glass people came and sealed up these holes and sealed the glass. The Building Supervisor sealed all around the window. Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ If you look closely at this photo (it's not a real good one, sorry) you can see that the bricks along the window edge do not have much mortar in them and as you can see, Brick piers were built in front of this. I'm pretty sure that the water coming in around the windows and runs down the window frames to underneath - which is why we noticed it in this area first. After heavy rain we noticed water coming through mortar joins and running down the wall. The Building Supervisor then sprayed the outside of the wall with a waterproofing agent. This HAS helped, but I'm not sure for how long. After noticing the walls leaking I took more notice of the mortar joins and found two that I can see right through! The Supervisor showed up yesterday (7 weeks since he last said he'd get the Brickie to fix it) and said he'll get on to the Brickie. I've asked for those two mortar joins to be redone and for the render under the windows to be re-done as well, as it looks terrible when the water dries. Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ I'll let you know what happens if anything happens at all. Sue Brick/Mortar question 19Nov 06, 2007 9:34 pm Eleven (11) LONG months after bringing it to J* K***'s attention, the brick/mortar work has finally been fixed.
The bricks still get damp in heavy rain, but the water doesn't run down the wall anymore. They've re-rendered under the windows and re-mortared the two joins where I could see daylight. It's not brilliant, but it looks like its the best they can do, so we'll have to accept that I s'pose. (After waiting so long, you get used to looking at the crap work anyway...) ...Now, to get them to fix the gap at the top of the garage door and then sign off on the maintenance and I hope I don't have to deal with them again. Thanks for all advice, opinions and comments. Sue Hi, I am planning to select San Selmo reclaimed original for the fascade of my build. I have seen many photos on line of the brick varying from a rustic to a neat finish.… 0 4582 Building Standards; Getting It Right! Hi, sorry if this is the wrong place - Iām new to the property/building journey (trying to buy my first home) so not sure where/who to go with these sorts of… 0 19160 2 8883 |