Don
Not answering the question, but what is different about "accrington"
brick to any other brick ?
Using mastic to repoint bricks sounds bizzarre, also rubbing down with
oil.
Are these bricks glazed or something ?
Simon.
I've heard them called 'engineering bricks' and Nori bricks, not
glazed but very hard. They're used a lot up 'ere in't north and look
rit grand when done proper.
Don
Something like this
http://www.accringtonweb.com/forum/f66/nori-brick-4998.html
This might help the OP as well
http://www.nori-acidbrick.com/Products.htm
Aren't they!
I need to cut a 6 inch hole through some for a vent, it's a job i've been
putting off.
Accrington brick is a bright red and has a semi-glazed appearance. It
is highly water- and acid-resistant. It was extremely popular in the
Lancashire mill towns where high rainfall, winter freeze/thaw cycles
and acid rain from the mill chimneys made for a very aggressive
environment that demanded a very durable brick.
In these towns, the only other way to get a waterproof building was to
use stone, which was of course much more expensive.
Accrington bricks have continued to be used as engineering bricks in
demanding environments from the 1880s until 2008. Sadly, the closure
of the Accrington brick works, part of Marshalls, now owned by the
Hanson Group, itself a subsidiary of Heidelberg Cement, was announced
only yesterday.
http://www.nori-acidbrick.com/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/smallbrainfield/2542906952/
Link to news article in the "Lancashire Telegraph" about the closure:
Oddly...
http://www.blackburncitizen.co.uk/news/3694230.Famous_Accrington_brick_manufacturer_to_close/
'THE historic manufacturer of Accrington Brick is to close with bosses
blaming the economic slowdown. '
That is very sad news, especially for the workers there. There are
some mighty fine buildings in the North West built entirely of
accrington brick, or Lancashire Bloods as I believe they were also
known.
I haven't made much progress with my query as to whether they should
be pointed with sand & cement or mastic, but one of the DIY Forums had
this:
"Don't worry..I think we had the wrong materials in ours. I suppose we
could sue the people who advised us but.....
Just make sure you use sand and cement. You may not know about
Accrington Brick ..it has very tight joins and is very non-porous so
red mastic was suggested..it is now coming out."
I suppose that could be due to poor workmanship rather than the wrong
material.
Don
I've been looking for similar info as we have a gable end all built in
Accrington brick and it looks to my untrained eye as if it could do with
some pointing.
--
Mick (Working in a M$-free zone!)
Web: http://www.nascom.info http://mixpix.batcave.net
Filtering everything posted from googlegroups to kill spam.
>Just make sure you use sand and cement. You may not know about
>Accrington Brick ..it has very tight joins
Which I suppose is why mastic was suggested because it will be easier
to get into the crack between the bricks
You should use sand/cement mortar or better still sand/hydraulic lime
mortar which is probably what was used originally. The pointing of a
brick wall is a sacrificial layer and should be weaker than the brick
(sounds easy in this case) and more porous than the brick (which
mastic isnt) to give a route for water to find its way out
Water will find a way out one way or another and it has done it by
blowing the mastic
Anna
--
Anna Kettle
Lime plaster repair and conservation
Freehand modelling in lime: overmantels, pargeting etc
Tel: (+44) 01359 230642
Mob: (+44) 07976 649862
Please look at my website for examples of my work at:
www.kettlenet.co.uk
>On Tue, 23 Sep 2008 10:41:10 +0100, Poster wrote:
>
>> Part of the frontage of my 1930's semi is in Accrington brick up to the
>> level of the sill of the front room bay window. The remainder of the
>> frontage is rendered and painted white. The Accrington brickwork
>> requires repointing and a couple of firms are giving me estimates. One
>> tells me that mastic is the best material to use the other tells me red
>> sand and cement is best. Both say that a rub down with oil will give a
>> good appearance. I know nothing of these things. What is the groups
>> opinion on the best way to go, please, mastic or sand and cement?
>>
>
>
>I've been looking for similar info as we have a gable end all built in
>Accrington brick and it looks to my untrained eye as if it could do with
>some pointing.
Looks like there's only Anna who knows anything about it!
Don
>On Tue, 23 Sep 2008 19:27:53 +0100, Poster <pos...@tesco.net> wrote:
>
>>Just make sure you use sand and cement. You may not know about
>>Accrington Brick ..it has very tight joins
>
>Which I suppose is why mastic was suggested because it will be easier
>to get into the crack between the bricks
>
>You should use sand/cement mortar or better still sand/hydraulic lime
>mortar which is probably what was used originally. The pointing of a
>brick wall is a sacrificial layer and should be weaker than the brick
>(sounds easy in this case) and more porous than the brick (which
>mastic isnt) to give a route for water to find its way out
>
>Water will find a way out one way or another and it has done it by
>blowing the mastic
>
>Anna
Thanks Anna, I will follow your advice.
(Enjoyed your website BTW)
Don
Four parts building sand.
One sharp sand.
One lime.
One cement.
Cant go wrong with that mix for re-pointing.
When I were a lad,
Pointing Nori brick was done with what looked like red sand mixed with oil.
There might have been other stuff in the mix- idon't know. One slight
drawback was that the oil (linseed I believe) was popular with the sparrows
who seemed to find it very palatable
John
--
John Mulrooney
NOTE Email address IS correct but might not be checked for a while.
Are you sure you aren't thinking of "red raddle", which was a
decorative treatment used to colour the bricks and/or mortar?
The bricks should be pointed with lime mortar. Treating afterwards
with red raddle is optional. ;-)
Red raddle. A red pigment used to mark sheep / red iron ore.
Might be I recall that the dryish morter like stuff went into the joints
and stood proud when finished. Definitely the joints and not the brick
face. Accy Nori brick is often shiny anyway
John
I think you recall correctly. In other parts of northern England,
where Accrington brick was not the most popular choice, the red raddle
was also used to colour the bricks. But as you say, it would not have
adhered well to the Nori bricks.