4.0 BOND, IN MASONRY,
 Bond, in masonry, systematic arrangement
of bricks or other building units composing a
wall or structure in such a way as to ensure
its stability and strength.
 The various types of bond may also have a
secondary, decorative function.
BONDS IN MASONRY WORK
Types of Bonds in Brick
Masonry Wall Construction
 Types of bonds in brick masonry wall construction are classified
basedon laying and bonding style of bricks .
 The bonds in brick masonry are developed by the mortar filling
between layers of bricks and in grooves when bricks are laid
adjacent to each other and in layers in walls.
 Mostly used material for bonds in brick masonry is cement mortar.
 Lime mortar and mud mortar are also used
Types of bond used in masonry work
• The most commonly used types of bonds in brick
masonry are:
1.Stretcher bond
2.Header bond
3.English bond and
4.Flemish bond
Types of Bonds in Brick Masonry Wall
Construction Cont.
Other Types of bonds are:
1. Facing bond
2. Dutch bond
3. English cross bond
4. Brick on edge bond
5. Raking bond
6. Zigzag bond
7. Garden wall
Types of Bonds in Brick Masonry Wall
Construction Cont.
1. Stretcher bond
Longer narrow face of the brick is called as stretcher as shown
in the elevation of figure below.
Stretcher bond, also called as running bond, is created when
bricks are laid with only their stretchers showing, overlapping
midway with the courses of bricks below and above.
. Stretcher bond in the brick is the simplest repeating pattern.
 But the limitation of stretcher bond is that it cannot make
effective bonding with adjacent bricks in full width thick brick
walls.
 They are suitably used only for one-half brick thick walls such
1. Stretcher bond Cont.
• They are suitably used only for one-half brick thick walls such
as for the construction half brick thick partition wall.
• Walls constructed with stretcher bonds are not stable enough
to stand alone in case of longer span and height.
• Thus, they Then need supporting structure such as brick
masonry columns at regular intervals.
• Stretcher bonds are commonly used in the steel or reinforced
concrete framed structures as the outer facing.
• These are also used as the outer facing of cavity walls
• Other common applications of such walls are the boundary
walls, gardens etc.
1. Stretcher bond Cont.
Fig-1: Stretcher Bond
2. Header bond
Header is the shorter square face of the brick which measures
9cm x 9cm.
Header bond is also known as heading bond.
In header bonds, all bricks in each course are placed as
headers on the faces of the walls.
While Stretcher bond is used for the construction of walls of half
brick thickness whereas header bond is used for the
construction of walls with full brick thickness which measures
18cm.
 In header bonds, the overlap is kept equal to half width of the
brick. To achieve this, three quarter brick bats are used in
alternate courses as quoins.
2. Header bond
Fig-2: Header Bond
Fig-3: Header Bond Isometric View
3. English Bond
English bond in brick masonry has one course of
stretcher only and a course of header above it, i.e. it has
two alternating courses of stretchers and headers.
Headers are laid centered on the stretchers in course
below and each alternate row is vertically aligned.
To break the continuity of vertical joints, quoin closer is
used in the beginning and end of a wall after first
header.
A quoin close is a brick cut lengthwise into two halves
and used at corners in brick walls.
3. English Bond cont.
Fig-4: English Bond
View
Fig-4: English Bond – Isometric
4. Flemish Bond
For the breaking of vertical joints in the successive courses,
closers are inserted in alternate courses next to the quoin
header.
In walls having their thickness equal to odd number of half
bricks, bats are essentially used to achieve the bond.
 Flemish bond, also known as Dutch bond, is created by laying
alternate headers and stretchers in a single course.
The next course of brick is laid such that header lies in the
middle of the stretcher in the course below, i.e. the alternate
headers of each course are centered on the stretcher of course
below.
Every alternate course of Flemish bond starts with header at
the corner. The thickness of Flemish bond is minimum one full
brick.
4. Flemish Bond cont.
 The
disadvantage of using Flemish bond is that
construction of Flemish bond is difficult and requires
greater skill to lay it properly as all vertical mortar joints
need to be aligned vertically for best effects.
 For the breaking of vertical joints in the successive
courses, closers are inserted in alternate courses next to
the quoin header.
In walls having their thickness equal to odd number of
half bricks, bats are used to achieve the bond.
 Flemish bonds have better appearance but are weaker
than English bonds for load bearing wall construction.
Thus, if the pointing has to be done for brick masonry
walls, then Flemish bond may be used for better aesthetic
view.
If the walls have to be plastered, then it is better to use
English bond.
4. Flemish Bond cont.
Fig-5: Flemish Bond
Fig-6: Flemish Bond Front
Appearance
4. Flemish Bond cont.
Flemish bonds are classified as:
Single Flemish Bond
i.
ii.
Double Flemish Bond
Single Flemish bond is a combination of English bond
and Flemish bond.
In this type of construction, the front exposed surface of
wall consists of Flemish bond and the back surface of
the wall consists of English bond in each course.
 Minimum thickness required for single Flemish bond is
one and a half brick thickness.
The main purpose of using single Flemish bond is to provide
greater aesthetic appearance on the front surface with required
strength in the brickwork with English bond.
Double Flemish Bond has the same appearance both in the front
and back elevations, i.e. each course consists of alternate header and
stretcher.
This type of bonding is comparatively weaker than English bond.
5.Facing Bond
• 5.Facing Bond: For thick walls, where the facing and backing are
chosen to be constructed with bricks of diverse thickness facing bond
is primarily adopted.
• Facing bonds consists of a heading and stretching
courses arranged so that one heading system comes after many
testing methods.
Dutch bond
• Dutch bond. It is a modification over the English bond and
consists of alternate courses of headers and stretchers, except
that every stretcher course starts with a three-quarter brick and
in every alternate stretcher course in header is placed after the
three quarter brick as shown in Fig. 2.46.
General Principle to be observed in Brick Masonry
Brick masonry
Brick masonry
• While constructing or supervising a brick construction, the
following points should to be kept in mind :
1. The bricks should be properly soaked in water, before they
are used.
2. The bricks should be so laid that their frogs face upwards.
3. Mortar used should be as stiff as possible.
4. The vertical joints of alternate courses should be in one
line.
5. The walls should be raised uniformly and vertically of the
wall should be tested at every course.
Brick masonry Cont.
• 6. All the joints should be of equal thickness and the
‘thickness of each should not exceed 0.5 to 1 cm.
7. In one day not more than 1.5 m of wall in height should be
constructed.
8. If the full length of the wall is not approachable, then
raking back must be provided as shown in Fig.
9. The work should be kept wet from 4 to 7 days until the
mortar sets and becomes hard.
10. When a main wall is to be connected to a cross wall,
recesses, called too – things should be left in alternate courses
to allow the two walls to be bonded with each other.
Types of Brickwork Defects due to Poor Workmanship
Brickwork is masonry produced by using mortar and bricks.
Brickwork provides a natural pleasing aesthetic to structure.
 Brick masonry provides high durability as during construction, one
layer is laid upon another and avoiding a continued line of joints for
two or more layer or course, moreover, an appropriate bond is formed
adhering bricks together by filling joints with mortar.
Standard brick size for modular brick is 200mm x 100mm x 100mm,
including 10mm mortar thickness.
Workmanship simply means the grade of skills used to deliver the
required tasks. Poor workmanship can result into lower quality work,
higher cost for maintenance and even failure of structure. It can take as
long as a year for defects or faults to surface after the completion of
structure.
Defects in Brickwork Due to Poor Workmanship
1. Failure to Fill Bed Joints
A higher work pace or weak supervision and during furrowing practice, the
bed joint filling might be improper. During practice of furrowing, a long and
narrow trench is made in mortar bed with the tip of his trowel, i.e. a gap is
created in middle of mortar bed parallel to face of wall.
A reduction in strength as much as 33% can be noted due to incomplete
filled bed joints. However, a significant impact in noted on flexural
resistance rather than on compressive strength and moreover, filling of
vertical joints is quite difficult than horizontal joints.
Further inevitable problems with respect to sound insulation and weather
exclusion are caused as result of unfilled perpendicular joints. Furrowing
practice must be avoided and a considerable work pace must be attained.
1. Failure to Fill Bed Joints Cont.
2. Excessive thickness of Bed Joints
An effective reduction in compressive strength of masonry is noted with increase
in thickness of bed joints as the larger thickness of bed joints results in larger
lateral tensile stresses in comparison to thin bed joints.
Thus, a too thick joint increases chances for collapse of member or structure under
working loads. For example, a bed joint that is 16 mm to 19 mm thick possesses
up to 30% less compressive strength than the bed joint that is only 10
mm.
3. Deviation from alignment or Verticality
One of the main issues with the brick walls is their vertical alignment, that’s
why a plump is always used to check for verticality at certain work points.
If masonry brickwork is constructed without use of plumb, there might be
unnecessary deviations from required vertical alignment.
These resulting deviations will result into extra amount of eccentric loads
and moreover, an effective reduction in strength.
 For example, a brick wall that possesses deviation of 12 mm to 20 mm
from required alignment might possesses up to 15% less strength than the
walls with no such defect.