About Make It Mudbricks

ABOUT OUR MUD BRICKS	MUD BRICK FINISHES	SPECIALITY MUD BRICKS
DIMENSIONS AND PRICES	PROPERTIES OF MUD BRICKS	ABOUT MAKE IT MUDBRICKS
GREAT SERVICE	ENERGY EFFICIENCY	FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
MUD BRICK WORKSHOPS	PUDDLED V'S PRESSED BRICKS	CONTACT
HOW WE MAKE OUR BRICKS	MORTAR MAKING	LINKS

MUDBRICK FINISHES

When you think of mud brick do you think of rough, bumpy walls or do you think of silky smooth, perfectly flat walls? Well either way you are correct! There are many ways to finish your mud brick walls, which will give totally different looks from rustic to ultra-sophisticated and everything in between. Here are some of the options.

Mortar Finishes
When you (or your builder) are constructing your mud brick home there are a range of ways to treat the mortar joints between the bricks to give very different effects.

Raked: the mortar is scraped out so that each individual brick is highlighted.

Shadowed: The mortar is smoothed out so that the bricks can just be seen like a shadow.

Smooth: The mortar is left flush with the brick so the wall is flat and individual bricks cannot be distinguished.

A mud brick wall rendered to give a smooth finish and painted with a natural clay slurry

A shadowed mud brick wall

	Wall Finishes Once the mud brick wall is constructed, there are a number of ways to finish the wall, which will bring even more variety: Raw: No treatment is carried out and the wall is left similar to a conventional fired brick wall. Another option is to expose the aggregate in the brick by blasting with a high-pressure hose before sealing. Bagging: This is when the wall is wet down and a piece of Hessian or a glove is used to rub over the wall and blend the brick and mortar joints. The number of times you go over the wall, the fineness of the fabric used and the composition of the brick will determine your finish. (eg. A broom will leave a much rougher surface than a cotton glove) Rendering: This is when additional mud is applied to the completed wall to either give a smoother finish or to protect the bricks from the weather. Our bricks do not need to be rendered although some home builders prefer that finish. Oxides or coloured clay can be used in this process to adjust the colour of your mud brick wall. There are a range of commercially available renders or you may choose to make your own. The key is to make it from the same material as the bricks and to screen it well to get a smooth finish. Surface Finishes Earth Paints: This term refers to the use of either clay slurry or a commercial produced earth paint especially formulated for earth buildings. These are painted on the wall after it has been bagged or rendered to seal it and make it the exact colour you want. Clay slurries are made by selecting a clay you like the colour of, mixing it with water to make a thin paint, straining it through a stocking to remove any "bits", and then painting it on the wall. A sealant such as Bondcrete (10%) is included in the final coat. Commercially produced earth paints are also available which are specially formulated for earth walls. Grimes Paints are very popular amoung mud brick builders. Sealing: Sealants are applied to make the wall more serviceable, to prevent water penetrating the wall and to dustproof inside. No sealant is required on the outside walls with our brick however most people choose to seal the inside walls so they are easy care and wipeable. Diluted Bondcrete or wallpaper size are commonly used to create a durable and practical finish on inside walls. There are as many different looks you can achieve with mud brick, as there are types of people who love them! Mud bricks is an amazingly flexible medium so you can create the home of your dreams!!
top Email us: peter@makeitmudbricks.com.au Peter Jirgens Phone 02 44460 140 Fax 02 44460 510 Mobile 0407 460 140 158 Hockeys Lane, Cambewarra, 2540 ABN 60 100 721 882 Copyright: Jirgens Civil Pty Ltd T/as 'Make It Mudbricks', 2009