18. Masonry

When the exterior elevation has been verified as correct and your builder has passed his required inspections you are ready for the mason to get started. Some municipalities will require that all wall ties are installed and some will require them installed to the first floor plate line. If you are using colored mortar the mason will write down his mix or it will be determined by the builder. This will insure that the color will be consistent. When laying brick the mason should always complete the front of your home fist. Mason's like starting on the sides because in most cases they are runs and go up pretty quickly. The reason you want to complete the front first is that brick like most things that have color are manufactured in 'runs' or 'lots'. Color and patterns are only guaranteed for the run or the lot. If you run out of brick before the front is complete your builder will order the same brick but he might not be able to get the same run. This could mean color variations on the front of your home. If the variations is on the back or side of your home it will be less noticeable. Bricks are a porous material and because of that there should be weep holes installed where the brick meets the foundation. If you live in a cold climate area where your brick ledge is at the bottom of the frost line, then your weep holes should be located about 4 to 6 inches above your final grade line. When the brick is going up your mason might leave the fourth or fifth brick out at the brick ledge. This will let the mason clean out behind the brick and make sure that water can flow down the back side and leach out of the weep holes. You have to realize that when you are laying brick and/or stone you are going to have excess mortar that is on the backside that will build up and fall in the cavity between the masonry wall and the vapor barrier. If your weep holes do not work properly you can get water build up behind the masonry wall and penetration into the home. Another thing you want to see on your home are expansion joints. Brick, stone or brick/stone combinations will expand and contract with the weather. Expansion joints control where this expansion and contraction will take place. There should be no wall over thirty five (35) feet long that does not have an expansion joint. You should have an expansion joint every twenty-five feet minimum. There are some cases where thirty-feet might be acceptable. Your builder and mason will try to put these joints at windows to make the breaks easier. They should run from the bottom of the foundation all the way to the brick freeze. If you have flaws in your cornice the mason should always tear the cornice down and brick correctly. Walking soldiers will hide a lot of imperfections. Hose bibs, electrical outlets, exterior doors and any other penetrations that require the mason to cut brick or mortar around them should be looked at tightness. These are great places for bugs to enter the home. When the masonry has been completed and the mason has cleaned the brick/stone you should stand back and look at the finished job. You are looking for straightness and for levelness. At this point you have trim boards, soffit, freeze boards, lintels, doors, door trim and other lines that should line up plumb and straight. Once the painter completes the exterior caulking and paint, your home should look great.