Large perps?

[Ian H]

I'm bricking up a window which is 8 bricks wide.

Is it ok to stretch my 9 vertical joins out to fill a 140mm gap? That would make them 15mm each.

Thanks.

 

[23vc]

I'm no bricky but I'm pretty pleased with my efforts on my extension, and some of mine are wider than that - I still come a cropper with the bond quite a lot
So I'd say your fine ....if your ok with how it will look... Happy to be told otherwise by the experts tho

 

[Ian H]

Thanks, yours look great from what I've seen.

Mine look very DIY but right enough, we will be having the back and side rendered some time because all the bricks are a poor match.

It's easier now I have a couple of rows on because I can look down the face of the to line them up.

 

[23vc]

That looks spot on, you must be happy with that .. apart from the brick match

 

[Ian H]

Yes

They match the original part of the house but there's a double side extension that's a right mix and match. They even built it 2ft lower that the house

But, saying that, if they hadn't then we wouldn't have been able to buy it.

 

[stuart45]

When bricking in a window and you havn't got brick to match, another method sometimes used is to set the brickwork back slightly from the existing.
This is sometimes used as a feature on new builds as it mimics what was done years ago when the window tax was introduced.

 

[23vc]

Does that mean you have to use starter ties then stuart and not key it in ?

 

[stuart45]

Yes, here's a few examples.
https://www.samizdata.net/2016/07/have-they-brought-back-the-window-tax/

 

[stuart45]

Another method used for big perps if it's higher up is to use coloured mortar, then rake out smaller perps and point in normal.

 

[tony1851]

I suspect that this window-tax thing is often misunderstood. Many larger Georgian town houses have these blind windows, but the residents would well be able to pay the tax. And they are often seen on quite grand houses, with expensive architectural features.
It was usually an architectural device used just to maintain the pattern and scale of the fenestration.
Maybe on smaller cottages, the tax would in some cases be the reason for having blind windows.

 

[Ian H]

There are some new builds near me with windows like that. I assumed they just ****ed it up

The side will end up being rendered eventually so my masterpiece will be hidden.

 

[Nige F]

I'm bricking up a window which is 8 bricks wide.

Is it ok to stretch my 9 vertical joins out to fill a 140mm gap?
Thanks.

That's fine - they will be Christmas joints - you always have a big joint @ Christmas

 

[Ian H]

If you saw my pointing up you would think I'd had a big joint whilst doing that!!!

 

[23vc]

Looks like a nice clean weatherstruck joint to me, something I always struggle to get right

 

[stuart45]

Weather Struck is probably a bit harder than a rounded bucket handle type finish, although back in the old days the joints were raked out to provide a key when it was to be rendered.