CAREER INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
STUDYGUIDE
CHAPTER 15: ANCHORED BRICK VENEER WALLS
INSTRUCTOR Mr. Brian Iasiello
1. Brick is considered by many as being the premier choice of siding for
quality homes.
2. Brick does not rot, twist, warp, or dent. The damaging forces of hail do
not penetrate it. Brick does not burn.
3. Less noise is transmitted through the walls of brick homes.
4. For these reasons, residential construction—including homes,
apartments, town houses, and condominiums—often relies on brick
veneer walls to provide low-maintenance, attractive, and desirable
exteriors.
Terms
1. Adjustable anchor assemblies - Assemblies used to anchor brick veneer to steel
framing.
2. Air infiltration barrier - A sheathing membrane installed to the exterior of
framing for preventing air infiltration.
3. Anchored brick veneer - A single-wythe brick wall supporting no weight other
than its own, requiring vertical support and anchored to either a load-bearing or
non-load-bearing wall, having an air space between the brick wall and the backup
wall.
4. Arching action - Forces within a brick wall permitting the brick to
partially support its own weight.
5. Brick binding - Forces created by differential movements, exerting forces on
window frames and doorframes, often leaving them inoperable.
6. Brick mold - An exposed trim of door and window jambs adjacent to the ends of
brick on a brick veneer wall.
7. Brick shelf - That part of the top of a foundation wall supporting the
anchored brick veneer wall.
8. Corrugated steel ties - Sheet metal anchors for securing brick veneer to
wood framing.
9. Dead loads - Permanent loads such as structural framing, wallboard, floor and
roof systems, and permanent attachments such as heating, ventilation, and air
conditioning components.
10. Differential movements - Unequal movements of building materials
caused by changing temperatures or moisture contents of materials.
11. Drip - A cutout on the underside of the projection intended to prevent
water from traveling beyond it and back to the face of the wall.
12. Eaves - Those parts of the roof projecting beyond the face of the wall.
13. Fascia - A board installed on the bottom end of rafters or roof trusses.
14. Frieze board - A board extending from the soffit to a point below the top of
the brick veneer.
15. Gable - The triangular-shaped end of a wall.
16. Head - The top of an opening such as above doors and windows.
17. Jamb - The exposed edges of a door or window frame.
18. Live loads - Nonpermanent loads such as occupants, furnishings, rain,
and snow.
19. Load-bearing wall - A wall that supports its own weight and the weight and
forces placed on it by other parts of the structure as well as the weights and forces
imposed by nature.
20. Masonry sills - Masonry installed below window and door openings, usually
brick rowlocks or precast stone.
21. Non-load-bearing wall - A wall supporting its own weight and no other
weights or forces.
22. Rake board - Trim enclosing the open space at the ends of the brick coursing
and the sloping roof line in a gable wall.
23. Soffit board - A board attached to the underside of the rafters or roof trusses
extending beyond the face of the exterior wall.
24. Steel angle lintel - A steel angle iron supporting the brickwork above an
opening.
25. Veneer wire anchoring system - A system for securing brick veneer to both
wood-framed and metal-stud framed structures.
26. Wind loads - Calculated as wind pressures, increasing with wind velocity.
Anchored Brick Veneer Walls
Anchored Brick Veneer:
-Single-wythe wall
-Vertically supported
-Anchored to a back-up wall
-Air space between brick and back-up wall
Air Space Provisions:
1. Permits circulation, reducing moisture buildup.
2. The air cavity should be at least 1” wide for brick walls anchored to wood
framing walls.
3. The air cavity should be at least 2” wide for brick anchored to steel studs.
Factors influencing cavity width and brick projection:
1. Brick width
2. Door and window trim thickness
3. Accuracy of plumb alignment
4. Roof eave designs
Anchoring Brick Walls:
1. Secured to back-up wall
2. CMU or framing (wood or light-gage metal)
3. 1 1/2” depth are nails securing veneer wall ties to penetrate wood wall studs.
4. Vertical spacing of the wall ties cannot exceed 18 inches.
Four methods to anchor brick walls:
1. Corrugated steel ties
2. Veneer wire anchoring
3. Adjustable anchor assemblies
4. Adjustable ladder-type and truss-type assemblies
Sill, Jamb, and Head Details:
A. Masonry sills:
1. Divert away water
2. Require flashing and weeps
3. Minimum 15-degree slope
4. Extend minimum 1" beyond wall
5. Accommodate differential movement between different
building materials
B. Jambs:
1. Exposed edges of a rough opening frame
2. Jamb trim is the exposed trim by the brick veneer.
C. Heads:
1. Top of a rough opening
2. Requires support for masonry above opening
3. Accomplished by a lintel placed horizontally across the opening.
4. The ends of the angle should rest on the supporting wall a minimum of
4 inches for spans no greater than 4 feet and 6 inches for spans greater
than 4 feet.
5. A minimum of 1/8” should be between the angle iron and back up wall.
Arching Action:
1. Courses of brick act as the lintel.
2. The “arch” supports the brick above.
3. Arch is also decorative.
Holding Bond in Gables:
1. Brickwork may extend into a gable.
2. The length of each course becomes shorter, but joints must still align (holding
the bond).