Planning to build masonry for your landscape? Definitely, you want it to look wonderful, functional, and fit your budget. It is important to get useful insight into different materials used for masonry and masonry landscaping construction. Let’s start with what exactly masonry is.
What is masonry?
Masonry is all about construction of walls, bridges, pillars, stairs, canals, dams, barrages, etc. Some common masonry construction materials include stones, concrete, bricks, veneer, and gabion. These materials are bonded together with the use of mortar or clay.
Following are the types of masonry materials;
- Stone– No other construction material is durable as stone. Stone is rarely affected by various environmental elements. Because of the strength and durability factors, stones last for ages, 300 to 1000 more years. Stone does not warp, dent, corrode, or swell. Elements like rain, wind, snow, and sleet do not cause any affect to the integrity of the stone. That’s why stone is one of the more preferred materials being used for masonry constructions. Different types of stone used in masonry include marble, limestone, granite, sandstones, and cast stones.
- Brick masonry– Bricks are lighter than stone masonry, and this makes them ideal to use in high-rise buildings. Some of the different types of bricks include clay bricks, concrete bricks, kiln bricks, engineering bricks, and fly-ash bricks. Kiln burnt bricks are highly used bricks as they are higher, durable, and affordable.
- Block masonry– Blocks are made of liquid concrete poured into a specific frame and then compressed. There are multiple types of blocks, including concrete pillar blocks, concrete corner blocks, concrete stretcher blocks, concrete blocks, etc. The use of each of these block types depends on the type of masonry construction project. You can get suggestions from your masonry contractor on types of masonry material to be used in a particular project. Likewise, various materials were used for the walks and blocks creation.
- Composite masonry– Two different types of materials are used in composite masonry construction. The two materials are used to provide strength, appearance, and durability to the structure. The cost of composite masonry may increase because of using two different materials.
- Concrete bag masonry– They are easy and quick to build. Most importantly, they don’t require any skilled labor to build. Just take a plastic fiber bag and fill it with the concrete material, and add water to it to prevent drying. Gradually, the concrete bag gets hardened and stuck with one another to provide strength to the masonry structure.
- Reinforced masonry– When the steel rods and cables are used in the concrete masonry structure, it is known as reinforced masonry. Steels rods and cables are used to provide strength and durability to the structure. These are generally used in high-rise buildings where high strength is needed.
- Veneer masonry– Veneers refer to flat panels of plastic, fiber, or wood. The veneer walls are the extra layer of masonry to the bricks or stone masonry. Veneer masonry may have an air space behind it.
- Gabion masonry– Gabion is used in the retaining walls that are constructed to hold back the soil and water. Gabion masonry refers to stones piled on one another and tied with wires to keep the masonry wall in place.
Select the best material for your construction project
Before choosing any masonry material, check what is already used in the existing structure. Then try to select the materials that complement the existing structure. The one way to find the right material is to approach the experts who have a thorough understanding of the material.
Why hire a reputed masonry contractor?
No matter which material you use for your masonry projects, you must have to approach the masonry contractor to handle the project. Handling masonry projects is not a DIY activity. It involves expertise tools, knowledge of construction materials, efforts, and sufficient time. Managing all this is next to impossible for any homeowner, especially when your masonry project is comprehensive.
Although finding the masonry contractor is itself a daunting task. All you need to do is shortlist some reputed masonry contractors operating in your local areas. Then you will have to meet each one in person one by one and ask several questions to determine if they can handle your comprehensive landscaping projects in Morristown, NJ.
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