Z Hello! I have a problem serious problem when building a garage from foam concrete blocks. Perhaps you can help me. Let me start by saying that the installation was carried out on cement-sand mortar without additional impurities. After the completion of construction, when the roof, gates, etc. had already been installed, it turned out that when drying, the solution did not “adhere” to the blocks. As a result, cracks formed. If you look from inside the garage to the street, vertical cracks about 1 mm thick are visible in the walls between the block and the mortar. Because of this, the wall is wobbly.
I would like to ask you, as specialists, why this happened and how to now fasten the blocks together.
P.S. We laid the masonry mesh every other row.
Answer
Properly laid blocks will not wobble even if there is no mortar at all, if the blocks have precise geometry. In the old days, stones were laid without mortar, hemmed so that the blade did not pass through, and nothing, medieval castles still stand (by the way, these types of masonry are still used to this day, but they have not become widespread due to the high cost of making “ideal” ones) blocks).
A common misconception is that the mortar “sticks” the masonry elements together. This is wrong. The solution ALIGNS the places where masonry stones rest on each other to distribute the load over the entire plane of contact of the blocks. Essentially, the solution performs a precise adjustment of the stones to each other. The fact is that the task of masonry walls (and they are designed for this) is to perceive vertical load. And that's all.
Indeed, after the mortar has set, a wall made of small blocks acquires the properties of a single structure, but this is a consequence of the cement hardening processes. binders, that is, a nice bonus, but the initial task of the masonry is to support the load of its own weight and the weight of the structures resting on the masonry.
The destruction of a structure made of individual blocks occurs precisely because of the loss of stability of the walls, and of course, the fact that the wall is shaking is very bad.
As for the appearance of cracks in vertical joints, this is a normal phenomenon, moreover, inevitable, since after setting the solution shrinks. To prevent cracks from appearing, jointing is carried out simultaneously with the masonry (in the very simple case- grout). By the way, wall laying is often done without special filling of vertical joints (the so-called “empty space”), for example, this is usually done interior walls, partitions that are subsequently planned to be plastered. That is, this does not affect the overall strength and stability of the masonry.
A masonry grid across a row is usually redundant in terms of the structural strength of the wall for garage walls, excluding the front wall into which the gate is built. Usually free-standing structures (without lateral bandaging), say columns, are reinforced. Partitions that have a relatively small thickness, corners, especially critical elements (where structures rest on them, for example). Reinforcement is performed to strengthen the wall against loss of stability, crushing and shearing loads.
But let's get back to your problems. It's a pity that you didn't send any photos; it's hard to say anything from the description. But if the wall sways, then the problems are usually:
- the foundation was made incorrectly, i.e. the foundation is unstable or missing,
- the ligation of masonry stones (blocks) is incorrectly performed or is missing altogether, that is, the wall does not have a solid structure (in this case, as a rule, individual elements will wobble);
- the wall does not have connections with others at the junction points (a free-standing structure); such a wall, of course, will yield under a sufficiently large lateral load, since it is not fixed;
- poor-quality horizontal seams, that is, the presence of foreign inclusions in the masonry mortar, incomplete filling of the bed with mortar, etc. (in such cases, one or two adjacent blocks can usually sway, where there is a defect; it is unlikely that the ENTIRE wall will be out of order poorly built).
If possible, please send photos, if possible, of high quality, general view, places of junction with adjacent walls, close-ups problem areas of masonry.
And yet, some mobility of the masonry is sometimes acceptable (a certain elastic plasticity is inherent even in brittle stone materials), but just that some. If the structure can be deformed even by small impacts, and if cracks also appear, then most likely something is wrong.
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Z Hello! I had a serious problem when building a garage using foam concrete blocks. Perhaps you can help me. Let me start with the fact that the installation was carried out using a cement-sand mortar without additional impurities. After the completion of construction, when the roof, gates, etc. had already been installed, it turned out that when drying, the solution did not “adhere” to the blocks. As a result, cracks formed. If you look from inside the garage to the street, vertical cracks about 1 mm thick are visible in the walls between the block and the mortar. Because of this, the wall is wobbly.
I would like to ask you, as specialists, why this happened and how to now fasten the blocks together.
P.S. We laid the masonry mesh every other row.
Properly laid blocks will not wobble even if there is no mortar at all, if the blocks have precise geometry. In the old days, stones were laid without mortar, hemmed so that the blade did not pass through, and nothing, medieval castles still stand (by the way, these types of masonry are still used to this day, but they have not become widespread due to the high cost of making “ideal” ones) blocks).
A common misconception is that the mortar “sticks” the masonry elements together. This is wrong. The solution ALIGNS the places where masonry stones rest on each other to distribute the load over the entire plane of contact of the blocks. Essentially, the solution performs a precise adjustment of the stones to each other. The fact is that the task of masonry walls (and they are designed for this) is to perceive vertical load. And that's all.
Indeed, after the mortar has set, a wall made of small blocks acquires the properties of a single structure, but this is a consequence of the cement hardening processes. binders, that is, a nice bonus, but the initial task of the masonry is to support the load of its own weight and the weight of the structures resting on the masonry.
The destruction of a structure made of individual blocks occurs precisely because of the loss of stability of the walls, and of course, the fact that the wall is shaking is very bad.
As for the appearance of cracks in vertical joints, this is a normal phenomenon, moreover, inevitable, since after setting the solution shrinks. To prevent cracks from appearing, the joints are grouted simultaneously with the laying (in the simplest case, grouting). By the way, wall laying is often done without special filling of vertical joints (the so-called “empty space”), for example, this is usually done on internal walls, partitions that are subsequently planned to be plastered. That is, this does not affect the overall strength and stability of the masonry.
A masonry grid across a row is usually redundant in terms of the structural strength of the wall for garage walls, excluding the front wall into which the gate is built. Usually free-standing structures (without lateral bandaging), say columns, are reinforced. Partitions that have a relatively small thickness, corners, especially critical elements (where structures rest on them, for example). Reinforcement is performed to strengthen the wall against loss of stability, crushing and shearing loads.
But let's get back to your problems. It's a pity that you didn't send any photos; it's hard to say anything from the description. But if the wall sways, then the problems are usually:
- the foundation was made incorrectly, i.e. the foundation is unstable or missing,
- the ligation of masonry stones (blocks) is incorrectly performed or is missing altogether, that is, the wall does not have a solid structure (in this case, as a rule, individual elements will wobble);
- the wall does not have connections with others at the junction points (a free-standing structure); such a wall, of course, will yield under a sufficiently large lateral load, since it is not fixed;
- poor-quality horizontal seams, that is, the presence of foreign inclusions in the masonry mortar, incomplete filling of the bed with mortar, etc. (in such cases, one or two adjacent blocks can usually sway, where there is a defect; it is unlikely that the ENTIRE wall will be out of order poorly built).
If possible, send photographs, if possible of high quality, of a general view, places of junction with adjacent walls, close-ups of problem areas of the masonry.
And yet, some mobility of the masonry is sometimes acceptable (a certain elastic plasticity is inherent even in brittle stone materials), but just that some. If the structure can be deformed even by small impacts, and if cracks also appear, then most likely something is wrong.
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Describe your question and your situation as specifically and completely as possible! Send photos and sketches! The more accurately you tell us what your problem is, the more accurately you will receive an answer! We will be happy to respond to any of your requests as soon as possible, usually the response takes no more than a day.
Formation of cracks brick house- a significant problem. Any owner would like her decision to involve a minimum of resources and time. In order not to completely redo a wall or building, it is important to take into account the terrain features, the quality of the material and the correctness of the masonry during construction. If the problem does arise, then there are a number of ways to eliminate this problem.
Causes of deformation
Before starting work, you should figure out why the wall moved away. This happens for reasons:
- soil features;
- poor quality foundation;
- poorly executed masonry.
The terrain on which a brick house stands is of great importance. If the soil is soft and the foundation is not poured too deeply, then the brick structure will not last long. This also applies to improper brick laying. The wall moved away if during construction brickwork was not fixed to the house using metal mesh, or horizontality was not maintained.
Materials and tools
To work to correct deformation in brick house tools needed:
For repair work you will need a hammer drill. - roulette;
- plumb line;
- level;
- perforator;
- trowel and hammer.
Depending on the chosen method of solving the problem, it is possible to use the following materials:
- cement;
- sand;
- metal plates;
- fittings;
- bolts.
What to do and how to fix the problem?
First, find out the reason why the wall of the house is moving away. Often the problem lies in problems with the foundation. So that the work done does not turn out to be useless, and cracks do not appear one after another, the cause of the phenomenon must be eliminated. A hole is dug near the damaged part to the beginning of the base. The crack in the foundation is cleaned out and expanded, strengthened with reinforcement and connected by welding. The reinforcing base is poured with concrete, after which hardening the damage to the wall is eliminated.
There are a number of options available for strengthening brick wall subject to deformation. For a minor crack formed around the perimeter of the structure, use cement mortar. They are used to seal the resulting gap, provided that it does not increase in size. In this case, partial replacement of the masonry is possible. If the damage is significant, then the structure needs to be replaced or strengthened with a stiffening belt.
Strengthening a falling brick wall with cement mortar
You can determine the dynamics of crack growth using paper beacons. To understand whether the crack is growing or not, paper beacons are attached and observed. As soon as tears have stopped forming on them, they begin to work. Its stages:
- The gap is cleaned of dust and moistened.
- A solution is prepared from cement and sand in a ratio of 1 to 2. Fill with water and knead until smooth.
- Cover the crack with the prepared mixture.
Partial replacement of masonry
When the damage is not limited to one crack, more radical measures are taken. For half-brick walls, replacement work is carried out sequentially:
- The masonry is dismantled at the site of damage.
- Can be cleaned with liquid cement mortar.
- The masonry mixture is mixed with cement and sand in a ratio of 1:2. Add water and plasticizer for elasticity.
- Red solid brick placed on the solution. The horizontal and vertical laying is controlled.
- The new masonry is firmly connected to the old one.
