Difference Between Bricks and Blocks & Their Types

In any construction, bricks and blocks play a vital role. These two construction materials have a lot of differences in the composition and usage. First, we need to understand what exactly are bricks and blocks.Considered as an environmental friendly building material, a brick is general a rectangular block made of clay, shale, slate, concrete, calcium silicate or stone. It is manufactured by mixing sand with water and then pressing it in steel molds. These raw bricks are then heated at a high temperature of 1000 degree Celsius which provides the strength to the bricks. Bricks are great insulators as well. They can store the heat energy of the sun and provide it in the room for several hours after the sun has set.The first striking difference between a brick and a block is in the shape, size, and composition. Blocks are mainly made of concrete. Blocks are larger in comparison to bricks. They come in both solid and hollow format. Blocks are used mainly in load bearing walls where strength is very important.Type of bricks: There are mainly five types of bricks.

• Common Burnt Clay Bricks: This is the most common form of brick used in construction. It is made by pressing raw material in steel blocks and then heating them in the kiln. These are used for general construction work and do not have a special attractive appearance.

• Sand Lime Bricks (Calcium Silicate Bricks): This type of brick is made by mixing sand, fly ash and lime followed by a chemical process during wet mixing. The color of this brick is gray. The shape is uniform and has a smoother finish.

• Engineering Bricks: These bricks are made by heating the raw material at extremely high temperatures. It has limited water absorption thus useful in locations where water damage can be a possibility.

• Concrete Bricks: These bricks are made of concrete. The colored concrete bricks are manufactured by adding color pigments. It is often used in facades and fences.

• Fly ash Clay Bricks: The Fly ash bricks are made by mixing fly ash with clay and then heating the raw material at high temperature. These bricks have to be manufactured with care as they tend to expand if the raw material has impurities.

Type of blocks: There are two main types of blocks that are solid and hollow. The hollow blocks are further divided into 8 different types.

• Stretcher block: These blocks are used to join the corners of the masonry. These blocks are generally laid down parallel to the face of the wall.

• Corner block: These blocks are used at the end of the masonry which can be a window or a door.

• Pillar block: These blocks are used in case of piers and pillars. They are also known as double corner blocks.

• Jamb block: These blocks are used at the location where there is an elaborated window opening in the wall.

• Partition block: These blocks are used in building partition walls. They have a larger height than breadth.

• Lintel block: These are used for the purpose of the provision of beam or lintel beam. It bears the load coming from the top of the structure.

• Frogged brick block: These blocks have a frog on the top side. It helps to hold the mortar and develop a strong bond with the top laying block.

• Bull nose block: These blocks are similar to corner block but with rounded edges.

Other than these above-mentioned blocks, paver blocks are also very common and are available in different colors as well. These types of solid blocks are used in making pathways and footpaths. Choosing the right building brick or block can increase the life of structure by several years.