When daydreaming about a home’s exterior, it’s difficult not to fall in love with the look of clay brick masonry and pavers. Aside from aesthetics, there’s a reason why solid clay brick was very popular many, many years ago. Simply, it is very durable, while also being resistant to termites, and offering some natural resistance to fire and earthquakes. Depending on where you want to install clay brick, some options may be more favorable than others.

Exterior Walls:
Unless a home is built with a solid clay brick exterior from the beginning, it becomes difficult to fully install brick exterior walls to a home without substantial demolition and renovation of existing structural walls, which can be considerably expensive and time consuming. If that does not sound appealing, there are a few ways you can get a similar look without significant renovation and expense. If you like the look of clay brick masonry and pavers, consider brick veneer. Brick veneer costs much less than solid brick as it uses real clay brick, but only one wythe (layer) of clay brick that can be installed to an existing exterior structure (wood, steel, etc.). If you’re looking for an even cheaper option, you might consider faux brick veneer. Faux brick veneer is made of polyurethane or similar plastics that are made to imitate the look of real brick. This is likely the cheapest option, however, faux brick is usually recommended for decorative accents, and has difficulty standing up to weather elements, making faux brick veneer ideal for more interior applications.

Walkways, Driveways, and Patio
When thinking about walkways, patios, driveways, or pretty much anything on your property (other than your home), options open. The two most common options are solid clay brick or clay brick veneer pavers. Note that clay brick veneer pavers are different than brick veneer (wythe) exterior walls mentioned above. Clay Brick veneer pavers are also known as “thin” brick pavers because they are considerably thinner than solid brick, and are still pretty strong. They tend to be recommended for high traffic areas such as driveways. Thin Clay Brick Veneer Pavers tend to be considerably cheaper than solid brick while looking mostly identical to solid clay brick. In both instances, the homeowner will need to keep up with regularly applying sealers to maintain the appearance and performance of the pavers.

When considering the best masonry products for your project, it’s wise to hire an experienced mason that regularly works with these products and can add insight. You can find high quality Masons on HutSolver. Simply take a picture of your project, post it, and start getting feedback and meeting high quality PROs.

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The post Love the look of Clay Brick Exteriors? Here’s How to Get the Look for Less appeared first on HutSolver Magazine.