The Infinity Design Solutions articles, on our website ids-dmv.com normally focus on the techniques and methodology related to historic preservation and restoration, particularly historic brick and mortar tuckpointing and repointing for preservation. Today, weâre taking a look at an interesting historic building with a completely modernized rebuilt structural interior. This particular building provides a very interesting perspective because the interior is completely unfinished, basically a blank or âwhiteâ space, so we have an unique opportunity here to see the bare bones of the hard structure of the masonry and concrete superstructure of the building. With technology changing around us, seemingly faster than ever, it feels like construction and building techniques are one of the few things in our world that hasnât changed drastically with modern technology. Workers still toil with the heavy burden of lifting much of the buildings mass into place, unit by unit. Tradesman are still need to have refined and hard-earned skills to perform their respective trade. When you look closely though, there are many changes in the technology related to materials and methods of installation that have changed and amount to somewhat drastic changes in the overall methods of building construction. (Still yet, a revolutionary seed change, when workers and journeyman skills are replaced by AI and robots still feels far off, for now.) The outline of todayâs discussion follows: The principle elements of the superstructure and load pathThe majority of historic brick row homes and masonry buildings in the oldest parts of Washington DC such as Capitol Hill are built with an exterior structural shell. That portion of the building supports all of the dead load of the floor systems and furniture and even the live load of people on the inside of the building, when people or furniture are standing on the middle of a floor in a room. For example, that floor system bears into pockets in the historic brick side walls of the building and those historic brick side walls of the building then transfer that weight from the floor system down to the footings, underground below the brick in the basement or crawl space of the building, generally buried relatively deep underground. By comparison, in modern construction footings are generally set at least a few feet underground, below the frost line but thatâs not always the case with historic construction. Builders, over 120 years ago at the time of the start of the massive amount of construction that took place in historic districts of DC, such as Capitol hill, builders were aware of the impact and importance of burying footings below the frost line, but sometimes footings were put a little bit more shallow than they would be built today. Transfer beams to open the floor spaceThis particular space though is different than the typical Capitol Hill row home or regular row building. There are several areas of buildings in Washington DC where commercial strips appear a little bit similar at the front facades of each respective building. They do appear historic, but thereâs a big difference. Many commercial buildings are built extra wide to allow for the greater space needed in a commercial operation whereas a typical row home has regular floor plans with living rooms, bathrooms, bedrooms and hallways. In in some cases, these commercial buildings have been joined together and even expanded, in some cases doubled or even tripled to make extra large gathering spaces or entertainment spaces for establishments such as restaurants. Often, in historic buildings, converted to restaurants, you may notice columns at the interior of the open space. This building is built in a similar type of way, but the entirety of the interior of the building framing has been removed and replaced with modern construction, with the exception of the front facade. This gut and rebuild allows the interior to be built with entirely modern materials and methodology. Instead of using wood trusses for the girders and floor system, steel beams and concrete decks span the space horizontally. The next picture below shows a transfer beam which supports a portion of the concrete deck. Concrete decks are generally built with internal deformed steel reinforcement bars. In some cases larger span openings will be built with a two-way or four-way post tension or pretension system where highly tensioned strong cables are used in compressive force in lateral direction with the slab to give the slab resistance from tensile deflection. Here though, by comparison to larger commercial concrete buildings, this system is relatively simple and post tension or pretension cables are not used in the interior space of the slab. Deformed rebar is used, but not tensioned, just internal to the concrete deck to provide tensile resistance. Compressive strength is inherent in concrete, meaning that concrete can essentially resist being smushed between heavy forces, inherently or natively, as a elemental nature of the concrete itself. However, concrete and masonry for that matter as well do not have inherent significant tensile strength or force resistance. When positioned or used in a configuration which requires tensile resistance masonry and concrete generally require implementations or alternative methods of combination with other materials to provide additional tensile force resistance strength. The steel beam in the photo below spans from a column to the top of a block wall. The block wall is vertically reinforced with concrete in every other cinder block vertical cell run. For this reason the block wall has relatively strong compressive strength and the spanning steel beam can support the column header although it doesnât need much support, but it can also support a portion of the concrete deck above. In this case the space between the steel beam and the concrete deck has been filled with a non-shrink nonmetallic grout. In the picture below the grout looks very similar to regular high strength concrete but it is actually a different material without the typical variety of larger aggregate normally found in concrete. The non-shrink grout is applied after the beam is installed to fill the void between the concrete deck above and the steel beam. This grout then transfers the load of the deck to the steel beam. A closer view of that non-shrink route atop the shop primed steel beam follows below. Another similar transfer beam is installed between the block wall and the elevator shaft. At the edge of the cinder block shaft wall, you can see a remaining portion of plywood form board. Plywood form boards are used to create a temporary deck upon which the steel reinforcement and wet concrete are laid before they harden in the casting and curing process. Once the concrete is hard, essentially cured for a period of at least 7 days, varying and depending on the type of concrete specified and used, the plywood will be stripped and removed. In this particular case though the remaining board shows an example of what the entire deck would look like at the time of pouring the wet concrete. Those plywood form boards are generally supported by a large aluminum and wood beams set on structural scaffolding, used in the temporary forming and shoring assembly, those aluminum beams are most commonly, A21 beams. The â21â in the name denotes the 21 foot length. Insidious damage from openings in the building shellIn this particular case, construction has stopped during the pandemic between phases of construction. The job site has been abandoned and the areas of the roof are unfinished and the stair and elevator shafts are wide open without a roof or membrane to protect the building from the exterior elements of weather and precipitation. Water has been seeping into the building for some time and has caused damage and deterioration, similar to the deterioration we find at historic brick masonry facades, but slightly different. The block in this building is built with a type-S mortar. Historic brick masonry, for example, is generally originally built with a low compressive strength high permeability lime mortar. Although historic brick and associated mortar generally has lower compressive strength and higher permeability it can remain relatively undamaged from the majority of typical weather patterns if pointed or repointed or tuck pointed on a proactive schedule. Similarities to historic masonryExposure to weather and precipitation will inevitably lead to the deterioration of historic brick mortar, if historic facades are not properly maintained or protected. Mortar, especially historic brick mortar is porous, (by comparison, modern mortar such as high strength Portland motor has much lower permeability yet still is not completely impermeable or undamaged by the deleterious effects of exposure to precipitation) it can absorb water, and even wick water inwards through capillary action at open voids and even through microscopic voids and capillaries. When mortar is exposed to rain or high humidity levels, water can penetrate the surface and infiltrate the mortar joints. This can weaken the mortar and lead to its deterioration over time. In climates like Washington DC, the presence of moisture in mortar can be particularly damaging. When water within the mortar freezes, it expands, causing internal pressure. This expansion can result in cracking, spalling (surface flaking and delamination), or disintegration of the exterior surface of the mortar. With repeated freeze-thaw cycles, the damage can worsen at a nonlinear, accelerating rate. Efflorescence is a white crystalline deposit, similar to the salt we are most familiar with, which appears on the surface of mortar and masonry through successive cycles.of hydration and dehydration. The process occurs when salts present in the mortar dissolve and The next picture below shows a different motor joint with clear signs of Biocolonization or plants or moss growth on the surface of the block at the mortar joints. Periodic repointing or tuckpointing involves removing damaged or deteriorated mortar and replacing it with fresh mortar, can help restore the integrity of the masonry structure. Care should be taken to use appropriate restoration methodologies and appropriate historically compatible materials that do not further harm the mortar and or lead to accelerated deterioration of the masonry construction or facade. As always, it is important to note that when managing the preservation of historic structures, guidelines and principles should be followed to ensure the appropriate methods and materials are used for maintenance and repair. Consulting with historic preservation experts such as Infinity Design Solutions is recommended to ensure the proper care and preservation of historic mortar. The picture below shows an area of the open floor of the building. Rainwater has entered the building, unmitigated for an extensive amount of time and cause damage, not just to the walls, but also to the concrete floor system. This damage can be repaired and halted in place. Once the building is dried and repaired, conditions can be ameliorated. One of the several places where the roofing system is completely omitted is shown below at the future elevator shaft. Working with concrete floor deck systems is significantly different than traditional historic wood framed systems that use a tight joist layout covered with a wood floor sheathing. In historic and contemporary wood frame systems, holes can be drilled or bored through floor systems to allow the passage of plumbing pipes, drains, and vents. Here though, for example in a concrete deck system the layout of plumbing piping must be measured and planned ahead of time so that blackouts or poor stops can be cast into the concrete to allow later passage of pipe runs. As an alternative to proper planning, core drilling of concrete is also an option, but generally significantly more costly than proper planning. Opening spans and header requirementsBefore the advent of mass production steel mills and ensuing relatively low cost steel and precasting cement plants (generally requiring the re-invention and use of Portland cement) availability for building construction, alternative historic methods of opening headers involved pure masonry and hybrid masonry-wood headers. Roman headers which are self supporting but require headspace are common in large floor to ceiling height buildings. Often though shorter segmented brick headers were used in Washington DC and Capitol Hill. The picture below shows a closer view of a masonry lintel. The masonry lintel is cast and cured in an off-site factory. Itâs not visible from the surface, but embedded in the masonry header, deformed steel reinforcement bars are inserted to provide tensile force resistance. Historic masonry upkeep and preservationTo properly maintain, repair, and care for these historic buildings, a knowledge, interest and understanding of historic building principles is required. Here in Washington DC, historic masonry buildings are extremely expensive and the amount of financial loss caused by improper repointing and low quality construction is staggering. However, in addition to the direct financial value of the property, there is also a cultural loss when historic buildings are damaged. By comparison, consider neighboring poor cities, when historic buildings are damaged, itâs not just the loss of value to the property owner, thereâs also a loss to all inhabitants and visitors of a city, present and future, who care about architecture, history, and culture. We encourage all of our clients, and all readers of this article and to our blog in general, to prioritize the historic built environment of Washington DC and neighborhoods such as Capitol Hill, Dupont Circle, and Georgetown and become educated on on the difference between proper historic preservation versus improper work which leads to significant damage to the historic fabric of a building. From a conservation and preservation perspective, several approaches can be taken to improve conditions related to deteriorated historic brick masonry. Primarily, lime mortar brick joints and low temperature fired soft red clay bricks should be inspected and checked on a routine maintenance schedule, either seasonally or at least annually. If brick masonry is kept in good condition, the life of embedded wood elements can be significantly extended. Hire a professional contractor which specializes, understands and appreciates historic construction elements and buildings. You can learn a lot more on our blog. Feel free to check it out. If you have questions about the historic masonry of your building in Washington DC, contact us or fill out the webform below and drop us a line. We will be in touch if we can help. <p>The post Structural Load Path In A Converted Historic DC Commercial Masonry and Concrete Building first appeared on Infinity Design Solutions.</p> Via https://www.ids-dmv.com/masonry/structural-load-path-in-a-converted-historic-dc-commercial-masonry-and-concrete-building/
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What Is Functional Engineering And How Do You Protect Masonry Facade?This week, we present the third part of a three part series, a continuation on the discussion about the Vitruvian Wave and projecting elements of masonry facades. The outline of the articles in this series follows below:
In last week’s article we took a look at an existing historic building with a light gray sandstone facade. The masonry frieze at the top of the ground level in the iron spot brick facade showed signs of excessive water entry, deterioration, and discoloration. A link to that blog follows for reference: Vitruvian Waves and Architectural Friezes – PART II Today we’re looking at a very similar problem or defect causing deterioration through water entry and accelerated decomposition of brick masonry at a building facade. The particular context related to the frieze that we saw in the last article, was that that frieze created a ledge or projection slightly away from the facade of the building. Protection, projections, and cappingThat projecting ledge essentially protects the lower portion of the facade below the frieze area, essentially creating a miniature awning or roof above the lower portion of the facade. During heavy precipitation with high winds, this type of projection would be largely ineffective to protect the lower area of the wall, however, during the majority of precipitation events with low wind, this type of facade projection is very effective to keep the lower area of the wall relatively dry. Masonry and brick facades of historic construction are generally very resistant to moderate exposure to the elements including precipitation for up to hundreds of years, but repeated exposure to moisture will break down the elements of brick and especially lime mortar. Further below we discuss the importance of tuckpointing, repointing, routine maintenance, and upkeep. We also looked at the example of a kerf or chamfer at the outer edge of tge underside of a projecting facade element, working similarly to a typical metal drip edge in contemporary or modern construction which allows water to roll off of an edge of a projection without rolling back to the vertical facade. Unlike non-water based liquids, water has a cohesive bond innate to the molecular structure, so water has a tendency to roll back and even stick to things a little bit and without a drip edge or chamfer cut into the underside of the projecting masonry, as was shown in our example, water can run from a standing or projecting ledge, back to a facade. In this case though this type of detail allows the water to drip away from the building without running all the way back, in the absence of significant winds. Similar to that iron spot brick masonry building in the previous blog, the building in the picture below was built with a structural brick facade. The lower portion of the building projects farther away than the upper portion of the building. The upper portion of the building was added as part of a retrofit after the original construction. The lower portion of the building below the projecting area of the wall was original. The designer did a good job to match some of the historic masonry details from the original construction. For example, they have used a structural red brick in a Flemish bond for the construction of the upper portions of the wall, to continue the pattern of the original wall. BioconalizationThe older or more original lower portion of the wall was tuckpointed or repointed with a similar color mortar, as used in the newer portion of the wall above. In both the picture above and the picture below, you can see a dark area below the projecting ledge of brick. The mortar joints of that area and even the face of the brick units themselves are stained dark with dirt and bioconalization. Bioconalization is the phenomenon of moisture Infiltrating into masonry services sufficiently to break down the exterior surface of the mortar into base components such as sand and silica, allowing plant growth. As the mortar breaks down, plants can begin to take root on the face of that masonry, especially in conditions with repeat and continuous high moisture. The surface of the masonry essentially becomes a perfect breeding ground for certain types of moss and plants. After moss begins to grow on the surface of a brick masonry facade, as shown in these photos, the plants that grow on the face of the masonry will evolve in succession, each breaking down the masonry and brick mortar farther so that higher forms of plant growth can take root deeper into the brick surface. Mortar DeteriorationThis sort of deterioration happens at an accelerating rate, as one area of masonry begins to deteriorate, that deterioration continues but at an increasing rate, faster and faster. Usually, in a mathematical presentation, this sort of increasing or accelerating deterioration would be described as non-linear, as the curve of deterioration continues but at a greater degree at each step in progression. From a building life-cycle management perspective, it is extremely beneficial and financially rewarding to invest in upkeep and preventative maintenance in historic brick facade buildings. The brick ledge shown in these photos is a rowlock course of masonry at a relatively low-slope. Sills, as used in windows or other projecting horizontal surfaces should be built with a cant, bevel, or slope from the exterior facade area of construction towards the outermost edge of the facade. An intended slope at a projecting horizontal area allows water to passively drain away from the building. This slope is a subtle yet important detail of design, at the majority of sills and horizontal areas. These areas bear the majority of residual repeat exposure to precipitation and hydration. A rowlock course of masonry, as used in this particular example, is technically an acceptable method of creating a sill, but generally for masonry copings or cappings at horizontal areas such as ledges, sills, retaining walls, and other exposed horizontal surfaces, it is sometimes (depending on configuration) a better practice to use longer units of masonry or stones that are set in a stretcher position. The difference may appear subtle in the overall design of the facade or layout of the construction, but effectively the ratio of joints to the respective masonry surface is decreased significantly by flipping the layout to a stretcher configuration. Sometimes though a rowlock course is structurally necessary because the brick spans both courses in a double whythe construction, structurally tying the top of the wall together between individual wythes of brick. That happens to not be the case though in this particular example, both because of the upper portion of the wall only being recessed 4″ shy of the lower facade and since it is a Flemish bond the wall is already built with high interconnection between wythes of brick. There are six main facings for brick positioning. A brick has 6 sides, but each of those sides have a matching opposite face. In total, each brick has 3 different side types that can be used as a facing, but each of those sides can be set in a vertical or horizontal running position. These six main facings follow: shiner, soldier, sailor, stretcher, rowlock, header. We have an encyclopedia of historic masonry restoration terminology on our website where we have listed more detailed descriptions of each of these facing types there on outer site, at the following link: Facings, of ashlar and brick masonryBrick, or ashlar masonry facings, refer to different orientations and placements of bricks in a brick wall or facade. Here’s an explanation of each brick facing:
These brick facings allow builders and architects to create different visual effects, patterns, and structural characteristics in brick walls, adding variety and interest to architectural designs. If you look closely, in the photo below, you can see that each area of exposed masonry, at each recessed mortar joint in the brickwork below the projecting ledge has dark areas of dirt and bioconization from exposure to excess moisture that has permeated through the projecting sill. This damage has taken place over years, not just one season of exposure to the elements, yet the damage is insidious because it has caused the breakdown of the mortar joints around each area of brick. The next pictures below show a different but adjacent area of the same wall. The big causal factor for the increased amount of biocolonization between the section of the wall shown in the photo above versus the one below is that the one below is shaded by a tree. There is a tree growing in the city sidewalk, right in front of the area with significantly higher bioconalization. Essentially, this means that since this portion of the wall is shaded and has less exposure to sunlight, it dries out much slower, therein has longer periods of hydration at or following each precipitation event and therefore experiences slightly more water damage at each successive rainfall. This picture, and the resultant comparison with photos above show a drastic visual contrast. Masonry preservation is costly, but can save so much! Tuckpointing and repointingTuckpointing and repointing are crucial processes for preserving the integrity of a masonry facade, enhancing building longevity, and reducing overall repair costs. We take a closer look at the process below and describe how it contributes to these benefits. Tuckpointing is a technique used to repair deteriorating mortar joints in a masonry wall. Over time, as shown the photos here at the projecting sill, the mortar between bricks can degrade due to exposure to precipitation and related moisture. Tuckpointing involves removing a portion of the outermost deteriorated mortar and replacing it with new (yet historically compatible) mortar, which restores the structural stability and moisture mitigation of the wall or facade. It’s extremely important that the mortar used in pointing is historically compatible. This, more than anything else, is the number one difference between good and bad pointing work. There are tons of differing characteristics related to quality and professionalism, but if you hire a cheap contractor to point your facade, and they don’t have knowledge, training and experience to get the mortar right, the damage caused by using the wrong mortar can be disastrously expensive. By properly restoring deteriorating mortar joints through tuckpointing, the integrity of the masonry facade is preserved. Restored and tuckpointed mortar joints prevent moisture infiltration, reducing the risk of water damage to the underlying substrate and internal building structure. Moisture intrusion can cause various problems such as efflorescence (salt deposits on the surface), mold growth, freeze-thaw damage, and biocolonization. The deleterious effects described can all ultimately compromise the stability of the masonry wall. Tuckpointing ensures that the facade remains strong and resistant to external elements. By preventing moisture infiltration and subsequent damage, tuckpointing extends the lifespan of the masonry facade and the entire building. It helps maintain the structural integrity of the walls, preventing cracks, displacement, or even eventual collapse. Timing matters, addressing mortar deterioration early on, tuckpointing minimizes the need for more extensive repairs or complete wall replacement as we have shown on our website in the moat extreme circumstances. Proper tuckpointing seems expensive, but it can last for decades and can lead to significant cost savings in the long run. By addressing deteriorating mortar joints at an early stage, you can prevent further damage to the masonry facade and the underlying structure. This proactive approach avoids the need for extensive repairs, reconstruction, or even replacement, which can be considerably more expensive. Regular tuckpointing maintenance is a cost-effective requirement to preserve the facade, enhance building longevity, and avoid costly repairs or renovations down the line. In summary, tuckpointing and repointing play vital roles in preserving a masonry facade and increasing building longevity while reducing overall repair costs. These maintenance practices address deteriorating mortar joints, prevent moisture infiltration, maintain structural integrity, and help avoid more extensive and expensive repairs. By investing in tuckpointing, building stewards and owners can ensure the longevity and durability of their masonry facades while minimizing the need for costly repairs or reconstruction in the future. Historic masonry upkeep and preservationTo properly maintain, repair, and care for these historic buildings, a knowledge, interest and understanding of historic building principles is required. Here in Washington DC, historic masonry buildings are extremely expensive and the amount of financial loss caused by improper repointing and low quality construction is staggering. However, in addition to the direct financial value of the property, there is also a cultural loss when historic buildings are damaged. By comparison, consider neighboring poor cities, when historic buildings are damaged, it’s not just the loss of value to the property owner, there’s also a loss to all inhabitants and visitors of a city, present and future, who care about architecture, history, and culture. We encourage all of our clients, and all readers of this article and to our blog in general, to prioritize the historic built environment of Washington DC and neighborhoods such as Capitol Hill, Dupont Circle, and Georgetown and become educated on on the difference between proper historic preservation versus improper work which leads to significant damage to the historic fabric of a building. From a conservation and preservation perspective, several approaches can be taken to improve conditions related to deteriorated historic brick masonry. Primarily, lime mortar brick joints and low temperature fired soft red clay bricks should be inspected and checked on a routine maintenance schedule, either seasonally or at least annually. If brick masonry is kept in good condition, the life of embedded wood elements can be significantly extended. Hire a professional contractor which specializes, understands and appreciates historic construction elements and buildings. You can learn a lot more on our blog. Feel free to check it out. If you have questions about the historic masonry of your building in Washington DC, contact us or fill out the webform below and drop us a line. We will be in touch if we can help. <p>The post Functional Engineering and Protection of a Masonry Facade first appeared on Infinity Design Solutions.</p> Via https://www.ids-dmv.com/masonry/functional-engineering-and-protection-of-a-masonry-facade/ The outline of the articles in this series follows below:
In last week’s article we took a look at an existing historic building with a light gray sandstone facade. The frieze at the top of the ground level showed signs of excessive water entry, deterioration, and discoloration. A link to that blog follows for reference: Vitruvian Waves and Architectural Friezes – PART I This week, we’re taking a look at a very similar issue at a different building, also built with a Vitruvian Wave frieze at the top of the ground floor. The picture below shows a portion of the front facade of a historic building. This building is built with iron spot brick. The frieze is also built with very similar source clay, but the frieze itself is produced through a chiseling process, not a terracotta process relief. This particular relief is relatively deep, deeper than the particular Vitruvian Wave shown in our past article, in this series; however the stone is actually carved, not cast. Distinctions between carved masonry and cast materialsSimilar to terracotta masonry, this particular repeating pattern has exquisite detail. Sometimes terracotta and hand carved stone or carved kiln fired clay masonry have a very similar appearance, but looking closely you can see a few telltale distinctions:
The design below the Vitruvian wave is called a lamb’s tongue, a repeating pattern, like a Greek Key, but with greater detail in this smaller area. A design, called a lamb’s tongue, is used in all different types of historic construction details. One of the most common is mild steel handrail finials. It’s clear though that the picture of a lamb’s tongue is not really accurate, instead it’s just a name that the entire classification of moldings are given because some of this style or classification do resemble a pedal or tongue. Other common elements, in plaster moldings, terracotta, cast iron, and stone carving follow:
At the right side of the picture below there is a dislodged joint between the individual masonry units of the frieze. When we think of stone or masonry sill, copings, plinths, and other types of masonry accent pieces (accent here meaning all of the masonry units which are not part of the central field of brick units in the wall), we tend to not think of them as masonry units. Granted in many cases metal work such as lead, tin, or even ferrous metals were historically used for cornices and other facade accents, but this building is an example of a case where the majority of facade accents are made from masonry very similar to typical brickwork. This type of masonry also needs preservation, restoration, maintenance and upkeep, just like field brickwork which requires tuck pointing and repointing. The Vitruvian wave is also described as resembling a loosely rolled parchment scroll because in historic times, parchment or paper that was used was kept in rolls instead of being bound in a book. In a section above we describe the lamb’s tongue detail of the molding below the Vitruvian Wave. A close up of that carved masonry detail follows below. When looking closely at the detail you can see the high level of relief between the details of the carving. When you look closely at the surface of the masonry, you can also see A smattering of black spots all over the surface. Those black spots are often referred to as iron spots. We see these same spots in some types of light color brick work. Some types of brick clay have higher levels of calcium and lower levels of iron, but iron is still found in some of these high calcium bricks but in larger pieces or chunks which later oxidize at the surface and leave a black spot at each individual occurrence. Just below the outermost edge of the horizontal, linear, protruding edge of the frieze, you can see a line, cut into the masonry. This line creates a recess, very similar to a drip edge. A drip edge, the type that we most commonly see in building construction is made of galvanized steel or aluminum. In most cases the aluminum will be coated from the factory with a color paint to match the accent details of the building or will be precoated in a TPO or similar material for adhesion at the termination of the roof system at the top of the building facade. In this case, though, the masonry shelf created by the frieze has a relief cut to allow water to trip off the protruding masonry unit without running back to the lower masonry facade. This subtle and small details significantly helps preserve the facade by minimizing hydration during typical rainfall periods. A kerf at a sillThis particular freeze is not a sill, but common to a sill or similar to a sill this particular projecting edge of the frieze has a kerf or relief cut at the underside of the outermost edge. That kerf along the bottom of the protruding element allows the outermost edge to be slightly lower than the portion just inside of the outermost edge of the projection. This detail is important in reducing the harmful effects of typical non wind-driven rain or precipitation. Wind-driven rain may still saturate the face of the building below the frieze, but in most cases of precipitation is not driven by rain, the raindrops will fall in a somewhat vertical pathway. The area of the facade below the projection will in most of those cases stay relatively dry. Staying relatively dry in the majority of precipitation events helps the masonry last much longer than it otherwise would if it were hydrated significantly at each successive rainfall event. Unlike a regular kerf, this projecting edge is actually cut at a chamfer, a slightly angled recess. That angled chamfer also helps prevent the masonry unit from planar fracture in the future. This type of element isn’t just found in hand carved friezes or the high end of preservation and masonry construction. Even linear sills or headers with significant projections often have a relief or curve installed inside of the outer edge at the underside of the horizontal masonry element. Back in early 2023, our company took a close look at a building with a similar detail: kerfs that ran underneath the outer edge of a set of window sills at a historic masonry facade. You can take a look at details of That article at the link below: Water Conveyance And Facade Leakage
The picture below shows the kerf or chamfer recess, very clearly, at this masonry frieze. As a drop of water runs down a vertical face of a building it will have a tendency to return back towards a lower portion of the facade of the building, running horizontally. However, in this case when each drop of water runs back to the lower face of the building the drop of water will drop off of the horizontal projection when it reaches the returning vertical angle of the kerf or chamfer. This will keep the lower portion of the building dry during rains without high winds. A rectilinear alternative Vitruvian waveAnother repeating pattern from Greek architecture is shown in the next picture below. This element is very similar to the Vitruvian wave, and also referred to as a scroll pattern or Greek Key, just like the Vitruvian Wave, this pattern repeats without variation and is often used in friezes and patterns or designs in classical or neoclassical architecture. This particular design is found at the sides of a porte cochere, larger than at typical portico, at a grand hotel entrance. The glass panel entrance roofs are common to allow passengers of vehicles to enter from the vehicle directly to the interior lobby in a rainstorm without getting wet. Here, in the next picture below, the same symbol is found at a freeze of terracotta clay tile, found in a accent at a facade of a building in Washington DC. The scroll pattern terracotta sits above a stretcher course of hinge bricks and below a rowlock course of water table brick. Unlike the porte chocere pattern though, this one, below, has a 90-degree turn variation between each scroll, per pair. This is a rectilinear alternative to the Vitruvian wave. In an upcoming article we will look at the functional engineering benefit of protecting architectural masonry facades. We talked about the direction of water, away from the building at ledges and projections at the facade, but in an upcoming article we will look closely at examples where projections have failed or have been built without an extending edge leading to water saturating and permeating into the masonry causing damage and bioconization which leads to failure of the masonry facade and accelerated deterioration. Historic masonry upkeep and preservationTo properly maintain, repair, and care for these historic buildings, a knowledge, interest and understanding of historic building principles is required. Here in Washington DC, historic masonry buildings are extremely expensive and the amount of financial loss caused by improper repointing and low quality construction is staggering. However, in addition to the direct financial value of the property, there is also a cultural loss when historic buildings are damaged. By comparison, consider neighboring poor cities, when historic buildings are damaged, it’s not just the loss of value to the property owner, there’s also a loss to all inhabitants and visitors of a city, present and future, who care about architecture, history, and culture. We encourage all of our clients, and all readers of this article and to our blog in general, to prioritize the historic built environment of Washington DC and neighborhoods such as Capitol Hill, Dupont Circle, and Georgetown and become educated on on the difference between proper historic preservation versus improper work which leads to significant damage to the historic fabric of a building. From a conservation and preservation perspective, several approaches can be taken to improve conditions related to deteriorated historic brick masonry. Primarily, lime mortar brick joints and low temperature fired soft red clay bricks should be inspected and checked on a routine maintenance schedule, either seasonally or at least annually. If brick masonry is kept in good condition, the life of embedded wood elements can be significantly extended. Hire a professional contractor which specializes, understands and appreciates historic construction elements and buildings. You can learn a lot more on our blog. Feel free to check it out. If you have questions about the historic masonry of your building in Washington DC, fill out the webform below and drop us a line. We will be in touch if we can help. <p>The post Vitruvian Waves and Architectural Friezes – PART II first appeared on Infinity Design Solutions.</p> Via https://www.ids-dmv.com/masonry/vitruvian-waves-and-architectural-friezes-part-ii/ What Are Vitruvian Waves And Why Should You Care?Today’s discussion is part of a 3-part series, the series goes into detail about architectural friezes, Vitruvian waves, historical significance and the importance of these details from a functional perspective. The outline of the articles in this series follows below:
An architectural frieze is basically a masonry or similar type material band that runs horizontally across or around the facade of a building. Our articles are often focused on the principles of historic masonry restoration, preservation, tuckpointing or repointing, and preventative maintenance. Today though we’re going to discuss some classic architectural details of incredible craftsmanship and beauty. These details relate to the principles of building science that tie right back to the common brick used in the majority of brick buildings right here throughout Capitol Hill and the historic neighborhoods of Washington, DC. We’ve looked at many masonry buildings in the past with similar details. Today though, we’re taking a close look at a commonly used pattern that goes all the way back to Greek architecture. In addition to the aesthetic value, the symbolism, and the implications around quality and craftsmanship, there’s also a functional purpose to banding, horizontal friezes, and similar projecting elements in masonry facades. The history of architectural friezesFriezes in buildings go back to Greek and Roman architecture, also referred to as Greco-Roman architecture, from over 2,000 years ago. However, you can see examples of decorative headers above columns in Egyptian architecture that predates the vast majority of Greco-Roman architecture by thousands of years. The big difference between this type of Egyptian architecture and Greco-Roman architecture is that the Greco-Roman architecture is broken down into divisions, known as orders, within each entablature assembly, even in cases of varying design. While it may be true that the Greco-Roman approach to the order of entablature was designated and defined or restricted, it’s debatable whether they were the first to use architectural friezes. Evidence indicates carved and decorative banding above columns in horizontal arrays were created thousands of years before the Parthenon, for example which was being built about 2,500 years ago. The picture below shows a portion of the front facade of a historic masonry building. The lower level of the building is clad with a limestone or sandstone, carved with reliefs at each window opening, resembling contemporary casings, but recessed instead of applied and rectilinear as opposed to ornate. Greco-Roman classical orders of architecture included an architrave below the frieze and a cornice above the frieze. Here there is a stone detail below the frieze but no cornice above the frieze. Greco-Roman friezes were part of entablature assemblies that rested upon the columns. Often the columns would be set with the entablature above and then in a tympanum on top of the entablature . Today we might refer to the tympanum as a gable, in contemporary types of construction. The brick above the ribbon or frieze above the ground level is a common brick, not a pressed brick. Accordingly, this type of brick has a relatively thick motor joint. The brickwork is built with a common bond. The common bond is not related specifically to the common brick, in fact it would be almost just as typical to see common brick Built-in a running bond but in this case the common brick is built with a common bond. The upper window sills are a limestone, matching the facade cladding at the level below. Use of architectural friezes in the New WorldWashington DC is very interesting, in terms of architecture. DC is one of the relatively early cities on the Eastern seaboard of the United States, part of the original 13 colonies of America. But not nearly as old as other nearby cities such as New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore. Many of the large buildings in Washington DC were designed and built at a period of time after the Baroque or Rococo styles of architecture. Commonly, in architectural trends, successive styles are a reaction or revolt to the prior style. Although neoclassical architecture has relatively simple designs in terms of rectilinear forms, the grand scale and particularly the entablature and orders of details related to the architectural friezes, architraves, and cornices, are borrowed from classical architecture. When you look at the side of the portico, (which we will talk about in much greater detail in next week’s continuation article), you may notice a similar but different symbol that runs around the horizontal band at the edge of the awning. The Vitruvian WaveThe Vitruvian wave is also known as a running dog pattern. However, the one seen in this particular photo clearly resembles what we think of today as a nautical breaking wave, not a running dog, and this symbol has a few different potential deeper meanings. Much of this discussion is based around the architectural details of this type of historic construction, but some of the elements that our company focuses most on are related to preservation, upkeep, maintenance, and restoration. When you look close in the picture below you can see there is a darker area on top of a limestone frieze banding. That darker area is at a relatively horizontal section of the banding which sort of creates a shelf. There’s a grade to that almost horizontal area which allows water to drain away from the facade. It also helps keep the lower portions of the wall dryer in rain events that are not coincident with heavy winds. Heavy winds change the way precipitation will wet a building facade. But in many cases the larger portion of the facade below is protected by this slate projection of the band area. When you look closely though, you can see that there is deterioration at the masonry at the top of the frieze band and also deep recesses in the mortar joints between the individual sections of the limestone. This type of slow but pervasive damage can be mitigated by routine maintenance. This type of maintenance doesn’t have to happen every day and it’s not even expensive but it needs to have a engaged and conscientious masonry contractor to provide careful seasonal cleaning and restoration of the mortar joints. The mortar joints may be able to last many years between each repointing. A noteworthy American reliefAlthough there are clearly deep ancient historic origins of architectural friezes, America of course has also put its own spin on this design detail. The frieze at the Greek parthenon is one of the most noteworthy in the world, that particular architectural frieze is over 3′ tall and over 500′ in length. By comparison the architectural frieze at the National Building Museum, in Washington DC, is approximately 3′ high by over 1000′ in length. The architect may not have been trying to compete, but an enormous effort has been applied into the design and construction this particular architectural detail. This particular detail was built into the building prior to the finalization of construction in the late 1800s. At the time, surely, the impact of the still Civil War was still palpable and present. The artwork in the casting of this particular frieze included the imagery of soldiers, calvary, wagons, and even depictions of sailors pulling boats and infantrymen driving artillery. While earlier historic friezes were often stone carved, this particular frieze was made from cast terracotta. These details make more sense when you consider the original use of the building. Currently the building museum is dedicated to highlight elements of architecture, engineering, and construction and related history and technology. At the time of original construction though this was a military pension building where the administration of pensions or retirement funds for military personnel was managed and dispensed. The level of architecture and detail in construction was enormous, compared to the amount of effort put into similar buildings today. The building museum’s website (at https://www.nbm.org/about/historic-home/) states that the original construction cost was $886,614. This factoid is fascinating. That value is similar to the cost of construction for the simplest of contemporary homes, today. That money, in 1894, would be worth a lot more today, because of typical inflation over the last roughly 127 years. Google says that $1 in 1894 would be worth about $353.63 in today’s money. It’s hard to believe. That means a penny would be worth $3.54. The implications, though, are fascinating. The value of the original cost of construction is a total of roughly $32 million in today’s dollars, adjusting for inflation. Part of the reason that this is fascinating though is not about the difference of dollars, through inflation, between 1894 and 2023, today. The real story is in the difference in those values of what that adjusted value purchased back then, in terms of construction, and what can be bought today. The cost of constructing this building today would cost 10 times more than it cost back then, even after adjusting for inflation. That’s an astounding revelation. As a side note, the level of fine detail in the relief is almost unparalleled with typical stone carvings; however, the downside or tradeoff with terracotta is long term durability. Clearly though after 100 years of exposure to the elements this particular relief shows near no signs of deterioration, either through durability or impeccable restoration and preservation. Historic masonry upkeep and preservationOn the surface, these types of ornate and high class details seem different than the average Washington DC residential or even more contemporary commercial building, However, some of the elements have significant consistencies. Even in the historic rowhomes of Capitol Hill, we have brick buildings with terracotta inlays. The inlays have three dimensional details, just like a carved relief from historic times but they are there in the front of facades, on the busy streets of our Washington DC neighborhoods. In a forthcoming week, we will post part two of this fascinating series on architectural facade details and historic architecture. . To properly maintain, repair, and care for these historic buildings, a knowledge, interest and understanding of historic building principles is required. Here in Washington DC, historic masonry buildings are extremely expensive and the amount of financial loss caused by improper repointing and low quality construction is staggering. However, in addition to the direct financial value of the property, there is also a cultural loss when historic buildings are damaged. By comparison, consider neighboring poor cities, when historic buildings are damaged, it’s not just the loss of value to the property owner, there’s also a loss to all inhabitants and visitors of a city, present and future, who care about architecture, history, and culture. We encourage all of our clients, and all readers of this article and to our blog in general, to prioritize the historic built environment of Washington DC and neighborhoods such as Capitol Hill, Dupont Circle, and Georgetown and become educated on on the difference between proper historic preservation versus improper work which leads to significant damage to the historic fabric of a building. From a conservation and preservation perspective, several approaches can be taken to improve conditions related to deteriorated historic brick masonry. Primarily, lime mortar brick joints and low temperature fired soft red clay bricks should be inspected and checked on a routine maintenance schedule, either seasonally or at least annually. If brick masonry is kept in good condition, the life of embedded wood elements can be significantly extended. Hire a professional contractor which specializes, understands and appreciates historic construction elements and buildings. You can learn a lot more on our blog. Feel free to check it out. If you have questions about the historic masonry of your building in Washington DC, fill out the webform below and drop us a line. We will be in touch if we can help. <p>The post Vitruvian Waves and Architectural Friezes – PART I first appeared on Infinity Design Solutions.</p> Via https://www.ids-dmv.com/masonry/vitruvian-waves-and-architectural-friezes-part-i/ What is the Purpose of a Scrupper?The pictures below show an example of a patio kneewall with holes at the base of the patio area. The holes in the brick wall are scuppers. Today we will look at the following topics: The purpose of a scupperScuppers are only used in a few types of building assemblies, like this, but this type of assembly is a bit rare. More commonly, scuppers are found at roof parapets where there is no effective drain to a gutter and downspout and at the hull of a ship above the top deck of the boat. The scuppers allow water to flow from the patio towards the outside and not build-up. Without the scuppers, during heavy rains, the rain water wouldnât flow freely out of the patio area, The water could build-up like a swimming pool. The scuppers allow the water to flow away. The purpose of a brick kneewallBrick knee walls are like regular walls of a building except they donât come up very high. Sometimes they come up to a guardrail height which is generally around 42â³ or to a handrail height of about 36 to 38â³ above the floor. In some cases the walls are built to about head height at about 6â² above the floor just to provide a little bit of privacy in one area of a yard, patio or courtyard. In this particular case these walls are built at about that height, just to provide a little bit of privacy from the busy city around the residential yard. A close up view of one of the scuppers in that brick kneewall follows below. You can see right in from the outside to the inside of the brick patio. Comparison between a scupper and a weepholeA few of our clients were confused because they thought these scuppers were actually weepholes. These two different types of brick masonry elements are kind of similar, but theyâre different in the way they work. A picture of a large brick retaining wall follows below. This wall is holding back soils and preventing that force and weight from toppling over onto the lower patio. The drains at the bottom of the wall are installed to relieve or alleviate hydrostatic pressure build-up. Hydrostatic pressure build-up is essentially water that builds up inside or around the dirt. Hydrostatic pressure can significantly increase the load on the retaining wall. Structurally, the wall can support a lot of weight but dirt really isnât that heavy against the wall. Dirt is super heavy but not against an adjoining vertical surface, The structural load is not very high. When the soils are fully hydrated and submerged though, that load becomes extremely high, even against an adjoining vertical surface. The closer view at the base of the wall shows two PVC pipes that pass from the blind side of the wall to the exterior face of the wall. An up close view of the weephole follows in the picture below. During and following heavy rains, weepholes like this may emit a stream of water which drips out of the dirt or soils on the blindside of the wall. In contrast, when looking at a scupper, you can see right through from the outside to the inside, in this case looking at the floor of the interior of the brick patio. By comparison, looking into a weephole will only let you see the dirty inside of a drain pipe or the dirt side of the retaining wall, where the retaining wall is holding back the earth above. We encourage all of our clients, and all readers of this article and to our blog in general, to prioritize the historic built environment of Washington DC and neighborhoods such as Capitol Hill, Dupont Circle, and Georgetown and become educated on on the difference between proper historic preservation versus improper work which leads to significant damage to the historic fabric of a building. From a conservation and preservation perspective, several approaches can be taken to improve conditions related to deteriorated historic brick masonry. Primarily, lime mortar brick joints and low temperature fired soft red clay bricks should be inspected and checked on a routine maintenance schedule, either seasonally or at least annually. If brick masonry is kept in good condition, the life of embedded wood elements can be significantly extended. Hire a professional contractor which specializes, understands and appreciates historic construction elements and buildings. You can learn a lot more on our blog. Feel free to check it out. If you have questions about the historic masonry of your building in Washington DC, fill out the webform below and drop us a line. We will be in touch if we can help. <p>The post Scruppers Through A Patio Kneewall first appeared on Infinity Design Solutions.</p> Via https://www.ids-dmv.com/masonry/scruppers-through-a-patio-kneewall/ Keep Condensate Water off From Brickwork With This Easy GuideToday we are talking about diverting a window AC unit condensate drain. The very specific details are part of a much bigger conversation about water trails on masonry facades and the associated damage caused by repeating residual precipitation direct to the surface of building facades. Masonry is somewhat resistant to the harmful effects of water and moisture, but over time, exposure to moisture and water can have severe debilitating and insidious deteriorating effects to brick, mortar, and other types of masonry. In fact, in a completely dry environment most masonry could last decades longer without tuckpointing or repointing of the mortar. We will look at the following topics: Water trails and slow damage to building facades from precipitationWe have examined the topic of water trails in the past, extensively. That information is still available and you can go back and look at some of the articles and topics related to water trails and water diversion around or on masonry facades at some of the following links: In these past articles, we talked about the subtle details of a masonry facade, where elements of the front side such as cornices, crowns, sills, window and door headers, plinths, and ostensibly architecturally intended freizes and other esthetic details will direct water from running just beyond the horizontal face of the greater part of the masonry facade field. These elements preserve a building by running water away from or just beyond the field of the brick facade, during most vertical precipitation events and without heavy winds the facade will stay much drier than it ever would without these elements. When we walk past a building and we look at the facade, these details may remain subtle, but they significantly preserve the building from slow and deleterious damage of deterioration from exposure to precipitation. Condensate water damage to brick masonryWhen working in a city neighborhood, we saw an interesting alternative to modern or contemporary types of diversion systems. We thought this was noteworthy. Itâs not a particular type of building methodology that we encourage or promote, but it is still very interesting and itâs clearly a very cost effective workaround to protect the building facade without spending much money. Condensate water is a collection of water molecules which come out of the air and collect on a colder surface. This type of water, similar to rainwater and precipitation, can also cause major damage to brick and mortar or even stone masonry buildings. Thereâs always some degree of moisture or water vapor in the air, even in cases of very dry climates, such as desserts. In regular non-dessert environments such as Washington DC or Capitol Hill neighborhoods, on most days, moisture can be very high, even in the summer when air conditioning units are running. Moisture content in the air can be very high and as air conditioning units run refrigerant through the coils of the machine, air passes over those coils and results in a collection of condensation. That condensation water is referred to as condensate. A cheap looking but functionally effective makeshift solutionCondensation water, once collected in air conditioning units, usually through a pan under a evaporator coil, is then discharged from the unit, normally by gravity. Condensation water can also be discharged with a pump. That pump or gravity drain then has to run away from the building. It can be collected internally, but in most cases with air conditioning units that water is just discharged right to the outside of the building. In the picture below you can see an air conditioning unit. In many cases because of the greater thickness of masonry walls, the dimensions of the air conditioning unit do not allow for a large projection away from the building, where the condensate pan will drain outside of the air conditioning unit. The picture below shows a funnel that has been connected to a hose to prevent the condensation water from running all over the facade of the brick building. This is a very cheap method and it doesnât look good or professional, but functionally itâs doing a great job of keeping the masonry dry from condensate discharge which occurs every time the air conditioning unit is running. In this particular case, itâs a very cheap set up. A professional setup would look more neat and wouldnât use just a hose, it could be run with a solid pipe. Also in this case, the hose terminates or ends right above the walkway. In most cases itâs problematic when a drain crosses a property line, into a public walkway. In many cases a building code has restrictions against certain types of discharges of water or liquids onto public walkways or across property lines. The same condition applies though even in a private walkway or patio. The biggest problem with this type of drain discharge away from a building, when just charging in winter conditions in our Washington DC area is that it can cause ice slicks or areas where ice will build-up unnecessarily, even without the coincidence of precipitation. Here though, in this particular case, ice slicks are not a related problem because this particular air conditioning unit only runs in the summertime and we never get ice or freezing temperatures in the summer season in our area of Washington DC and Capitol Hill. Itâs not fancy at all, but the way theyâve built this, theyâve just taken an automotive oil type funnel and used that to widen the upper end of the hose inlet. It might look cheap, but itâs working to keep condensate water from running all over the brick facade of the building. Theyâve used an electrical conduit mounting clamp to mount that hose to the brick wall. Again this isnât a professional looking application or installation, but functionally it is effective. While we do not recommend this type of installation, thereâs easily more professional ways of doing or accomplishing the same thing, but this works to help protect the masonry. Aside from the screws that have been otherwise unnecessarily installed in the brick facade, this makeshift type application is actually helping preserve the facade and while there are more professional ways of doing the same thing, we thought this was a really interesting attempt to preserve the masonry facade of the building. We encourage all of our clients, and all readers of this article and to our blog in general, to prioritize the historic built environment of Washington DC and neighborhoods such as Capitol Hill, Dupont Circle, and Georgetown and become educated on on the difference between proper historic preservation versus improper work which leads to significant damage to the historic fabric of a building. From a conservation and preservation perspective, several approaches can be taken to improve conditions related to deteriorated historic brick masonry. Primarily, lime mortar brick joints and low temperature fired soft red clay bricks should be inspected and checked on a routine maintenance schedule, either seasonally or at least annually. If brick masonry is kept in good condition, the life of embedded wood elements can be significantly extended. Hire a professional contractor which specializes, understands and appreciates historic construction elements and buildings. You can learn a lot more on our blog. Feel free to check it out. If you have questions about the historic masonry of your building in Washington DC, contact us or fill out the webform below and drop us a line. We will be in touch if we can help. <p>The post A Really Cheap Way To Keep Condensate Water Off of Historic Brick first appeared on Infinity Design Solutions.</p> Via https://www.ids-dmv.com/masonry/a-really-cheap-way-to-keep-condensate-water-off-of-historic-brick/ What are the consequences of a tree growing right through a brick wall?The other day, while we were working on one building, we saw another nearby building that had been out of use for a significant period of time, likely unoccupied for years. So much can be learned from buildings that are in states of significant disrepair. Often there is an opportunity to see the building from a different perspective with finishes or components removed which would otherwise impede observation. In this particular building, a tree was growing right through a triple or quadruple wythe portion of a brick exterior partition. Looking closely at the damage being created by this tree, it was fascinating, seeing the brick wall being ripped apart, each brick torn from the next. In slow motion over time as the tree grew. We looked several details of this building:
The picture below shows the rear facade and an angle of the side facade of a historic brick building, built over 100 years ago. This building, unlike other industrial buildings, is built with an entirely brick superstructure. That means that the main part of the core and shell of the building are entirely built with brick. Elements of plaster and cement rendering were used at the time of original construction at specific esthetic facets and details of architectural beautification. However, concrete was only used at specific parts of the structural load path of the building and the majority of the building’s structural elements are made by a triple or quadruple wythe brick exterior walls and thickened parts of engage columns made of the same types of structural solid kiln fired clay bricks. Paulownia trees, also known as Princess trees have taken root and started to literally grow from small perches in the facade. These so-called “perches” were neither original nor intentional. These perches are actually just omissions or areas of deterioration which have led to or created omissions in the brick of the exterior facade of the building. As the brick has deteriorated and spalled, chunks of the brick have fallen out, large enough for seeds to land in that area and on top of those ledges created through deterioration. Trees have taken root and grown. The old remaining mortar, after the adjacent bricks had fallen out, had created a fertile enough ground for the roots to propagate and grow. This particular type of plant is often considered a weed because it grows fast and although a weak wood fibered invasive species to the United States, is strong in ways that it can separate heavy building materials. The tree is paradoxically also comparatively very weak and will actually often collapse under its own weight in less than about 30 years when branches have become damaged or bifurcated from the trunk. Biocolonization and damage to masonry by plantsIn the vast majority of cases, bioconization starts out small and expands, over time, to become larger and larger. Not only do colonies of small microbial matter grow larger and larger, the individual plants and/or species of plants growing on mortar joints and in masonry will become larger and larger. The plants growing in a mortar joint will literally change over time because as one species weakens the mortar joint, other species begin to grow. This process happens in succession, similar to the process of structural failure which we talk about below. Plant roots start out super small, as small as one cell width. That is smaller than a human hair and those small plants roots are so small that they can fit through very tiny cracks in old deteriorated mortar. Once the roots start to grow, they expand significantly and with extreme pressure and force. There are several articles on our website where we discuss the interesting and deleterious effects of plant growth on buildings through bioconization on mortar joints and movement of structures through tree growth and roots. Tree Trunks and Roots Moving Brick Columns Spalling and Exploding Bricks Part II How Rain Affects a Brick Facade Part II Clinker Bricks in a Unique Architectural Masonry Style Top 10+ Prevalent Threats to Masonry Structures – PART II Mortar Bees Holes – Examples from the field The next picture below shows a closer view of the outside corner at the rear of the building. It’s apparent that several different types of repairs have been done, likely at different times in the building’s history. Overall the cracks have extended to significant size and there is visually apparent lateral deflection. Lateral deflection is the planar undulation or movement of portions of a facade to the point that areas of the facade are no longer in line with the planar shape of the building. We often talk about lateral deflection looking like a belly becoming fatter, an area pushing out of the otherwise flat shape of a wall. Prevention and brick tuckpointingThe vast majority of problems related to plant growth in or through masonry and bioconization can be controlled and mitigated through simple upkeep, restoration repointing and tuck pointing. Tuck pointing is a relatively thorough process, when done in a wholesale approach, but even spot pointing, repairing the areas of greatest damage, can have a major beneficial effect to deter bioconization and damage from plants and plant growth. New buildings do not need to be restored or repointed for decades, it takes a long time for properly applied or installed mortar to deteriorate, masonry is a building material with particularly high longevity and durability. Older buildings such as the classic historic buildings of Washington DC, Capitol hill and other historic neighborhoods of the Washington DC downtown or near downtown area are already very old and if they haven’t been pointed or restored already, they’re at a point where they need proactive upkeep and maintenance. The next picture below shows another tree trunk growing in the area near the corner of the wall. This specific tree trunk is the largest of the ones identified at this particular building. The size of the trunk is considerable. From the parts that we could access, we estimate the trunk to be over 8″ in diameter. The brick wall is significantly impacted by the space of the trunk girth and the wall has basically succumbed to the force and strength of this tree. The tree is literally pushing the corner of the building apart. Where the walls meet in this corner, they are separating away from each other which will lead to the destabilization and collapse of this portion of the building. A building corner is a point of significant strength. The corner, due to the countering planes of joined brick, is significantly strong to resist typical forces of lateral deflection, but in this case, being that it is separated or being separated from within, it is uniquely undermined. The issue of corner strength often comes up when discussing renovations with clients that involve or include the enlargement of rear doors from kitchens to outdoor decks, for example. In these cases, we generally strongly recommend not opening the new sliding or French style swing door all the way to the corner of the where the rear wall meets the rear end of the building. The building itself has significant strength at that location from a structural perspective. Physical strength of plantsPlants are stronger than people realize. Plants grow in cells very similar to animals, but the cells of plants have a cell wall, a cellulose structure around each individual cell. The combined strength of plant roots, stems, and branches is significant. As each part of a plant grows cell by cell, the expansive force is significant enough to break apart very heavy materials that animals are not strong enough to break without using the leveraging forces, or mechanics, of tools or machinery. The picture below shows a view of the crack in this brick wall, looking towards the interior. From the exterior, you can see that several whythes of brick have been split apart and the trunk of the tree pokes out in the center of the crack. Towards the lower part of the picture you can see relatively small roots, currently now only about 3/8 inch in diameter, but in time, these roots or adventitious roots will also grow to be large enough to split more of the wall apart. At the top right corner of the picture below, you can see a portion of the exterior-most part of the brick which has been covered with a parge coat of cement. At that cement parge coat, similar to stucco, there are areas of moss growing on the surface of the cementitious material. Biocolonization starts out in simple types of cellular growth lake moss and mildew. Mildew is fungal and moss is a plant, but unlike trees, moss is nonvascular. This type of early stage bioconalization can trap water onto a surface of masonry or building materials, Causing materials to either stay wet or with significant hydration and moisture indefinitely or for longer periods in drying or dry-out cycles. Although moss and mildew are simpler types of biological growth common as the areas of building materials stay hydrated for longer periods of time and as the microbial or microscopic filaments of roots and plant growth grow on these surfaces, the breakdown of materials is intensified and exacerbated by the presence of these small plants and mildew. Structural destabilizationIn some way, the issue or phenomenon of structural destabilization can be a bit analogous to things falling in sequence like dominoes. Structural destabilization and failure happens in a chain of events. Often the root cause will appear benign or really vague in appearance for a long period of time. Then, major problems will happen, seemingly, all at once. But if you look closely and know what you’re looking for, you can often see indicators or tell-tale signs ahead of time to give you clues that problems are happening below the surface which will eventually result in catastrophe or major structural failure. The next picture below shows a different view of a portion of the tree trunk growing through the bricks. This large tree trunk also started out very small, just the size of a filament, from a plant seed. As it’s grown up, it has increased in size and strength enough to break a heavy structural brick building into pieces. Historic masonry upkeep and preservationTo properly maintain, repair, and care for these historic buildings, a knowledge, interest and understanding of historic building principles is required. Here in Washington DC, historic masonry buildings are extremely expensive and the amount of financial loss caused by improper repointing and low quality construction is staggering. However, in addition to the direct financial value of the property, there is also a cultural loss when historic buildings are damaged. By comparison, consider neighboring poor cities, when historic buildings are damaged, it’s not just the loss of value to the property owner, there’s also a loss to all inhabitants and visitors of a city, present and future, who care about architecture, history, and culture. We encourage all of our clients, and all readers of this article and to our blog in general, to prioritize the historic built environment of Washington DC and neighborhoods such as Capitol Hill, Dupont Circle, and Georgetown and become educated on on the difference between proper historic preservation versus improper work which leads to significant damage to the historic fabric of a building. From a conservation and preservation perspective, several approaches can be taken to improve conditions related to deteriorated historic brick masonry. Primarily, lime mortar brick joints and low temperature fired soft red clay bricks should be inspected and checked on a routine maintenance schedule, either seasonally or at least annually. If brick masonry is kept in good condition, the life of embedded wood elements can be significantly extended. Hire a professional contractor which specializes, understands and appreciates historic construction elements and buildings. You can learn a lot more on our blog. Feel free to check it out. If you have questions about the historic masonry of your building in Washington DC, contact us or fill out the webform below and drop us a line. We will be in touch if we can help. <p>The post A Tree Growing Right Through A Brick Wall first appeared on Infinity Design Solutions.</p> Via https://www.ids-dmv.com/masonry/a-tree-growing-right-through-a-brick-wall/ Beam pockets on a 100 year old building – case studyLast week, we finished a two-part series in our blog on a particular dilapidated brick rowhome. That building was built over a 100 years ago and has been in disrepair for decades. Part of the building has collapsed and today we’re going to look at a different part of that same building and another nearby building to discuss a separate topic related to spanning structural supports used to create openings in masonry walls. A picture of that building follows for reference. Structural load pathBuildings are simply very heavy, especially historic row homes in Capitol Hill and other historic neighborhoods of Washington, DC. Each historic row home weighs over 100 tons, even relatively small row homes and large row homes can weigh over 200 tons, just in the dead load of building materials. Imagine, each truck load of building materials weighing over a ton, in net payload, and then imagine hundreds of those truckloads of building materials stacked, one upon the next, into an individual historic brick building. It is easy to imagine the immense mass and weigh of each building. The design of each building works to stand the building structure up in a way that the building is self-supported (with shared demising walls though between rowhomes) from the ground, sometimes several stories into the air. A load path, runs through the building from the structural footings, embedded into the earth, at the base of the load path, up through the structural walls in the middle, spanning and supporting the floor systems at each level, up to the rooftop and then across the roof. That load path is essentially built up so that there are supporting and dependent elements like a human skeleton, for example, run vertically with horizontal elements bearing on the vertical elements below. The historic front and rear facade walls are technically structural, in most historic row homes, but in most cases, they are not superimposed by the other elements of the building such as the floor systems and or the roof. In most cases, the side demising walls support the majority of the internal load of the building. Beam pocketsBeam pockets are omissions intentionally left out of the side demising walls to allow a space for joists and beams to be seated into the brick wall. Essentially, the horizontal floor joists of a building are supporting the live load of the building. The live load includes things like people and furniture and personal possessions. Those things weigh a lot, but the overall load of those items is relatively small compared to the overall load of the building itself. That floor system does not actually connect directly to the footings or the earth, at the upper floors, but through a transfer of the load, at the ends of the beams or joists, the load or wait is imposed upon the side demising walls of the building. FirecutsGenerally, in historic times, each joist was set into the wall, at spacing around 16 in on center. That means that a two-inch joist would have roughly 14 inches of open space between itself and the next joist on either side. The joist itself would run from one side of the building to the other, and the overall span of the floor system would coincidentally match the open space from wall to wall, but each joist would actually be longer than that open space. The joists sit into the wall space approximately 3 in on each side. This beam pocket essentially creates a resting place for the joist or beam to bear on the brick wall of the building. Where the joists or beams sat in the beam pocket, the joist was generally cut with a slight angle to create a triangular shape at the end of the joist. This angle cut, referred to as a fire cut, did not actually detract from the structural capacity of the joist, but it was important because it allowed the joist to collapse, intentionally, in the case that the joist would be compromised in a fire. The fire cut also allowed for a deeper angled placement into each respective pocket. This was very important because in a row of buildings, built in succession, if a fire were to cause a floor to collapse, the portion of the floor that would collapse would still have a significant weight. The weight of that floor falling, without an angled fire cut at the end of the joist, could destabilize and lift the bricks up at the upper side of the fire cut. This sort of destabilization could cause a fire In one row home to collapse and topple the wall of the adjoining row home. A fire in one building is a catastrophe, certainly, but if that fire were to cause the collapse of an adjacent building, a brick wall which would otherwise stop a fire, would spread to the adjacent building and the next and the next. These firecuts allowed one building to have floor systems which could collapse but at least would not spread to the next building and all the way down a city block. In the picture below, the floor system collapsed, likely many years ago. At the height or level of each floor system, you can see a series of vertical shaped rectangles in the side demising wall of the remaining adjacent brick building. These vertical shaped rectangles and succession are the beam pockets where each floor joist used to be nestled and secured. Joist load and transferAs explained above, at each floor joist, the live load of the building is supported by the floor system. That live load is imposed upon the floor decking, the wood floor system on top of the joist, and then the joist transfers that load to the brick walls at the side of the building, where each joist sits in a respective beam pocket. that brick wall then carries that load down to the footing of the wall underground. The next picture below, shows a closer view of the series of beam pockets. The bricks were each set and built around and space filled with the wood beam. In many cases, mortar was squished out from the brick mortar joint onto the side of the wooden beam, but unlike construction today little attention was applied to fill each area to set the joist without the possibility of movement. In fact, as explained above in the details related to the fire cut, it was also a goal of the construction to allow movement of the floor joist. When you look closely, you can see significant variation in the shape and form of each beam pocket. Historic implications vs. modern methodologyThere are significant differences between historic and modern methodologies of building construction, with masonry structures such as the building shown in the pictures above and modern structures varying widely in material types. We’ve already talked about the distinction between historic fire cuts. By modern standards, we would not use a fire cut in the vast majority of circumstances. Concrete is a common building material, in modern times. In structural brick buildings or masonry buildings, in modern times, we would use concrete structural decks, for floor systems, and in many cases we would use wood LVL’s, wood trusses, or steel trusses. In some cases wood or steel trusses would be attached to a building at a steel ledge, similar to a shelf angle, a type of steel angle iron. In most cases though, in modern times today, many buildings are built with stick framing, especially for residential construction. Residential construction, by comparison to commercial construction, is generally very lightweight and can be assembled very quickly. In modern Construction, wood framing can even be used for multi-unit type construction, with core board or gypsum board fire separation at the demising walls or demising assemblies. Opening spansVery similar to spans in the floor systems of buildings, there are also often large spans at the exterior facades of buildings. In the picture below, we show a picture of an area that was once open at an industrial garage door. Unlike many contemporary garage openings this particular building had a carriage style door, not a roll up or rollback type garage door. Nonetheless, the opening overall is wide, over 10 ft in total with and although today it is filled in with a man door and masonry infill, the brick in the wall, above the former opening, was once solely supported by a pair of steel angle irons. Steel headersThis steel angle assembly worked very similarly to a wooden joist assembly. The structural assembly is supported on both sides, at the end of the joists. In this case, the steel angle is also supported at only the ends, at the time of original construction. The load of weight above the center of the steel angle, similar to the live load on the floor of a historic building, is spread out and supported at the ends with no direct support at the middle of the opening. Essentially that steel angle assembly is transferring the load from the middle, above the opening out to the sides and then the walls at the side of the building carrying that load down to the structural footing at or below the grade of the earth. The next picture below shows the exterior wall of the building from a lower angle with a slightly wider view of the existing remaining facade. The building is almost in ruins, but in this state of dilapidation we can see several layers of the historic construction, in some cases slightly delaminated away to show the substrates below what is normally seen when the building was in normal condition. The brick structural walls of the building needed to be tuckpointed or repointed at some point, many decades ago, but instead of proper tuckpointing or repointing and or masonry restoration, a contractor at the time applied a stucco parge coat to the exterior, using the rendering to substitute a proper repointing. The new wall that is used as an infill is slightly recessed, inside the exterior of the face of the rear wall and the steel angle above the opening is rusted and oxidizing, to the point that it is almost deteriorated and defunct. The infill is a hodgepodge of different materials, likely modified and changed at different points throughout the later part of the life of this old building. At the right side of the wall, a portion of exposed CMU or concrete masonry unit cinder block is exposed. The door has an exposed wood header, likely a 4×4 or 4×6 timber, and a portion of a plywood board at the right side of the door indicates that the door itself has also been changed at some point in the life of this infill portion of the wall. Instead of modifying the opening or purchasing a door that fit the existing opening, the opening size was reduced just enough to fit the newer smaller door. Historic masonry upkeep and preservationTo properly maintain, repair, and care for these historic buildings, a knowledge, interest and understanding of historic building principles is required. Here in Washington DC, historic masonry buildings are extremely expensive and the amount of financial loss caused by improper repointing and low quality construction is staggering. However, in addition to the direct financial value of the property, there is also a cultural loss when historic buildings are damaged. By comparison, consider neighboring poor cities, when historic buildings are damaged, it’s not just the loss of value to the property owner, there’s also a loss to all inhabitants and visitors of a city, present and future, who care about architecture, history, and culture. We encourage all of our clients, and all readers of this article and to our blog in general, to prioritize the historic built environment of Washington DC and neighborhoods such as Capitol Hill, Dupont Circle, and Georgetown and become educated on on the difference between proper historic preservation versus improper work which leads to significant damage to the historic fabric of a building. From a conservation and preservation perspective, several approaches can be taken to improve conditions related to deteriorated historic brick masonry. Primarily, lime mortar brick joints and low temperature fired soft red clay bricks should be inspected and checked on a routine maintenance schedule, either seasonally or at least annually. If brick masonry is kept in good condition, the life of embedded wood elements can be significantly extended. Hire a professional contractor which specializes, understands and appreciates historic construction elements and buildings. You can learn a lot more on our blog. Feel free to check it out. If you have questions about the historic masonry of your building in Washington DC, contact us or fill out the webform below and drop us a line. We will be in touch if we can help. <p>The post Beam Pockets And Structural Historic Masonry Spanning Supports first appeared on Infinity Design Solutions.</p> Via https://www.ids-dmv.com/masonry/beam-pockets-and-structural-historic-masonry-spanning-supports/ Learning Masonry Structure – Stripped down building ruins reveal hidden secretsLast week we took a look at a brick row home that was in ruins, literally falling to the ground. The neighboring buildings on each side are still in functional use and one of them is even occupied. This particular building presented us with this unique opportunity to see the anatomy of the inside of a building in a stripped down and partially disintegrated form. Parts of the building which are normally hidden behind finishes like plaster and/or drywall are exposed, allowing us to see the hidden details from the historic construction over 100 years ago, just like the buildings of the majority of Capitol Hill and the historic neighborhoods of Washington, DC. Part I of this series is found at the following link: Learning Masonry Structure Anatomy From Old Ruins – Part I In the image below, we take a peak beyond the chimney into the footprint of the main part of the building. All of the walls and the majority of the old floors are almost all gone, deteriorated and degenerated or decayed, back to debris. Someone might look at this and misunderstand what they see, they might think that since the Greek Parthenon lasted for thousands of years these old city rowhomes should last just as long. They’d sort of be right in one way but totally wrong in another way. Yes, the materials are similar in some ways, technically different classes of materials: stone masonry vs. kiln fired brick and lime mortar, so almost totally different, yet still similar. While the large stone used in much of the buildings of the ancient world might not be the same as smaller units of kiln fired clay brick, it still has several similarities: Advantages of Stone and Brick masonry
The early History of brick and stone masonryIn the links below, you Learn more about the early history of brick and other types of masonry and learn about parallel invention, a phenomena where independently, humans have created similar inventions at similar times. Parallel Invention or Multiple Invention Parallel invention or the concept of multiple discovery is fascinating because it opposes the traditional view of a heroic theory of invention and discovery, and happens to align with the concept of convergent evolution which is supported by our current yet changing understanding of the fossil record and repeated evolution into animals similar to vultures and crabs, in biological examples. Modularity in brickwork, related to repointingOne of the big differences is not related to the material source origin but more related to the masonry unit size. Large stone construction still has to be pointed (tuckpointed or repointed) and restored and maintained throughout the indefinite life cycle of the structure, but brickwork requires more consistent pointing and tuckpointing or repointing must be conducted and completed in a relatively large area compared to the ratio or relative size of the masonry units. For example, In a brick wall of only 10′ X10 feet, that’s 100 ft². In that area there is roughly 600 linear foot of joint to be repaired or restored, within a similar area of large stone masonry, in stone columns, for example, there may only be 10 linear feet of joint to be repaired within the same 100 ft² area. Overall, that difference is 60 times as much joint to be maintained, repaired, restored and requiring upkeep. The difference is massive. Considering the high amount of upkeep and maintenance required for brickwork, compared to large stone masonry,we ask ourselves whether or not the builders of only just 120 years ago realized that this level of maintenance would be required and the answer is: yes, it’s actually pretty simple. At the time, going back a 120 years or even going back thousands of years, it was always an option to use giant carved stones for the construction of homes, but it didn’t always make sense because those large stones require serious engineering and large teams of workers to move, lift, set, and assemble. Regular historic rowhomes in Washington DC in Capitol Hill type neighborhoods were built with relatively small teams of workers, not giant teams or massive engineering initiatives. Floor decks, set into the loadpath of brickThe next picture below shows a look even deeper into the building. You can see the remaining floor decks very clearly. A portion of the low slope roof framing remains, much of these elements have fallen apart and are completely destroyed from exposure to the elements, unprotected from a dilapidated roof that has already fallen away. The only portion of glass fenestration, at the windows, which remains, is at the few windows which were boarded up in time to prevent them from being broken, from vandalism, likely years ago. From within the footprint of the building, when you look up, you can see straight to the sky. Almost no portions of the original roof remain in place. The brick walls themselves include no floor to ceiling cavity. Modern walls are generally framed with dimensional lumber which creates cavities, both used for thermal insulation and running of wiring and pipes. These cavities are super helpful in installing the portions of a building or home that make it functionally useful or usable. By contrast though in a historic building, in the case of the picture below the interior side of a solid brick partition is just covered with approximately 1.125″ of plaster. In modern construction, generally, a oriented strand board or plywood subfloor will be installed on the top side of the floor joist. Here though, fully bared, very few bits of framing remain at the structural floor system. You can see that the T&G historic wood flooring was installed directly on top of the floor joist system. Those remaining pieces are scattered about in the process of slowly falling to the ground one-by-one like a pile of messy pixie sticks. On the right hand side of the picture, there is a close view of the remaining portion of that chimney. It’s clearly visibly apparent from the close view of the photo that that brick work and remaining mortar needs to be restored and repointed or tuckpointed. One step further back shows a bit of the lowest portion of the floor system, under the old roof of the building, within that footprint of the exterior walls. The stack of trash and debris piled up on top of the ground within that building rises high enough to be seen, even when looking in from the outside. All of those debris have never been cleared from the building, they just lay there stacked one piece of fallen material on top of the other. The top floor rear exterior wall hangs precariously, just on the wood beam below. Outside of the tie-in and structural web of the other walls of the building, it’s a bit disconcerting to look up as the remaining portion of that wall may weigh thousands of pounds. And yet it sits on nothing more than the single wood timber girder beam. A single chimney with a double flueThere’s an interesting facet about this particular chimney. Studying the shape of it now, with a lot of the internal parts from the original construction, now missing and/or defunct and in shambles, you can still make out some of the details related to the original mechanical functions. The fireplace fed into this chimney, but the chimney tapers to a single flue before it gets to the top floor. At that top floor, the run of the chimney continues but it looks like it just had enough space for a single 9″ X9 flue tile. It’s likely that that flue tile ran all the way down to the chimney on the main living level, the ground floor of the building. But below the highest floor of the building, the chimney is double that thickness. About eight courses of brick below the top floor girder or about 8 courses below the point which the chimney tapers to thin to a single flue tile size, there is a rough opening that looks like it could have been an intentionally built hole. This could have been an opening for a penetration of a metal sleeve that was used to vent from a boiler in or near the basement that ran up through and beside the fireplace chimney but exhausted to the outside just below the bottom of the top floor of the building. In result, overall the chimney itself likely wasn’t just made for the fireplace, it was made both for the fireplace and for an exhaust pipe venting air from a boiler or other mechanical equipment. The next picture below shows a metal pipe sticking out through the foundation area of the building. That metal pipe could have run all the way to the exterior of the building and been used as a fuel oil tank fill pipe. It’s hard to see from the initial survey of conditions, but that fuel oil tank may very well likely be still under a massive pile of debris which have fallen down from above. If so, there are several environmental concerns about proper removal of a fuel oil tank and prevention of spillage, either from haphazard handling or movement or from oxidation and/or rot of the ferrous metal shell of the tank and spillage into the earth below. You can see the voids in the historic brick mortar. Some of the masonry has spalling at the face area of the bricks. Historic masonry upkeep and preservationTo properly maintain, repair, and care for these historic buildings, a knowledge, interest and understanding of historic building principles is required. Here in Washington DC, historic masonry buildings are extremely expensive and the amount of financial loss caused by improper repointing and low quality construction is staggering. However, in addition to the direct financial value of the property, there is also a cultural loss when historic buildings are damaged. By comparison, consider neighboring poor cities, when historic buildings are damaged, it’s not just the loss of value to the property owner, there’s also a loss to all inhabitants and visitors of a city, present and future, who care about architecture, history, and culture. We encourage all of our clients, and all readers of this article and to our blog in general, to prioritize the historic built environment of Washington DC and neighborhoods such as Capitol Hill, Dupont Circle, and Georgetown and become educated on on the difference between proper historic preservation versus improper work which leads to significant damage to the historic fabric of a building. From a conservation and preservation perspective, several approaches can be taken to improve conditions related to deteriorated historic brick masonry. Primarily, lime mortar brick joints and low temperature fired soft red clay bricks should be inspected and checked on a routine maintenance schedule, either seasonally or at least annually. If brick masonry is kept in good condition, the life of embedded wood elements can be significantly extended. Hire a professional contractor which specializes, understands and appreciates historic construction elements and buildings. You can learn a lot more on our blog. Feel free to check it out. If you have questions about the historic masonry of your building in Washington DC, contact us or fill out the webform below and drop us a line. We will be in touch if we can help. <p>The post Learning Masonry Structure Anatomy From Old Ruins – Part II first appeared on Infinity Design Solutions.</p> Via https://www.ids-dmv.com/masonry/learning-masonry-structure-anatomy-from-old-ruins-part-ii/ Why should you learn masonry structure anatomy by studying old ruins?This week, weâre taking a look at some really interesting ruins of an old building. We think this is a very interesting context to learn about and analyze a building and the history of construction technology and building methodology, itâs almost like an archeological excavation but in this case weâre just making g visual observations without any actually digging or disturbance of the physical remains. We had the opportunity, in this case, to see the elements of construction in a cutaway type view. You can learn so much about building construction and the methods of creating building assemblies by looking at the partially deteriorated and destroyed ruins of old buildings. This building is built very similar to a typical rowhome in Capitol Hill or other historic neighborhoods of Washington DC. While this building is falling apart, dilapidated, piece by piece deteriorated in a freefall of accelerated physical atrophy, by comparison the attached building nextdoor is in the middle of being renovated, a complete gut remodel. The next door building stands, like a foil character in a novel, as an example of a building of complete opposite condition, side-by-side. The next door building shines a light on the issue of value. Itâs a recurring theme woven throughout the context of building restoration, upkeep, and repair. Economics are central to the driving forces of the decisions we make related to preservation and restoration of buildings. Grade Portion of the BuildingIn the picture below, you can see the full length of the above grade portion of this building. The building stands 3.5 levels above grade, a relatively tall yet slender rowhome the heart of the city. The three levels above grade constitute the majority of the home and building, with the half level that remains below grade as an extra rise that keeps the living space in the dryer areas above grade and separates the living space from the damp of the basement. At the time of original construction, todayâs systems of HVAC and moisture control technology had not been developed or invented and many of the products we use today for building construction related to water abatement or waterproofing did not yet exist. It was rare that the basement of a typical row home was finished at the time of initial construction, in most cases it could be used as a storage space or a root cellar but it was only in more modern times that we consistently started finishing these basement areas to make them part of the overall living space. Today itâs common to have a den or gathering area in the basement, in addition to utility elements like HVAC units, bicycle storage, powder rooms, and workout or fitness areas, mud rooms, and the ever critical laundry rooms. The remaining portion of (what today appears to be) the rear facade of the building is largely constituted by the remains of an old brick masonry chimney. Itâs really interesting that a chimney would take up such a large portion of the rear wall of this building, but thereâs reasons for why the chimney is so central to the function of this historic home and itâs not really the rear wall of the building. At the time of original construction, there was likely a rear ell portion of this building which has already collapsed and been removed. This apparent but misnomer of a rear facade was actually an interior wall of the building, structural nonetheless, and functionally very important. Brick Structure of the ChimneyThe chimney once worked as a fireplace in the main entry or ground level and possibly also as an exhaust air chase for a basement boiler. The next picture below shows the brick structure of the chimney and structural load path of the fireplace at the main level, transferred to the foundation through the structural brick wall of building with thickened sides on each side of the fireplace. Itâs likely there was once a smoke shelf that sat on a ledge, still visible, in the brick chimney, above the firebox. That particular smoke shelf is gone though at this point. In the next picture below, you can see a clear view of that area above the fireplace and you can also see the underside of the actual exterior brick partition at the top floor of the building. There was a wood header, still in place today, to support this span of brick. While the remainder of the wall below was not actually exterior. The top floor of the building had a smaller footprint and the door opening that still remains, shown above, led to a balcony at the rear of the building. Although the remaining ruins of this rowhome are in shambles, it was once a functionally accommodating home and building, a terrific place for a typical family to live. How Rooms Were Wider And Hand A Larger FootprintLike a typical window or door header, the wood beam below the bottom of the top floor rear wall creates a header or a structural girder so that the brick can span over the opening below. The opening below allowed the room to be open between the area below that top floor structural wall, otherwise there would have had to have been a structural wall right in the middle of an interior space that otherwise could have been functionally more useful if it had been opened. Since the wood girder was in place, that room could then be wider and have a larger footprint and therefore more useful. In most cases a wider footprint allows for more functional options and a better potential for effective use of a space. Several generations ago, layouts with many separate rooms were more common because families stayed together even across several generations and even in office spaces, cubicles were less common, more individuals in a firm had acyltual walled offices. For residential buildings, families stayed together with multiple generations of the same household. This still happens a bit in the United States, but itâs much less common today than it was several generations ago. Far and wide, by-and-large, overall we prefer open floor plans today even more than we did in the past, In a typical thin rowhome creating an extra division at a room like this for no functional reason, just to carry the structural load paths, would have reduced the effective options for use of the interior space. The area below the fireplace may have had a fuel tank near the base of the chimney. It could have also been used for storage space, but cellars were not often used, even for their potential storage space, many generations ago in the past. At the time of original construction in the early 1900s or late 19th century, people simply had much fewer possessions than they do today. The picture below shows the condition of the historic masonry brickwork at the area at the base of the chimney on the main living level. The brickwork is deteriorated, in bad condition, out of its original planar shape and form. The mortar joints are largely deteriorated, in many cases completely defunct and even missing in many areas. Thereâs a stair-step crack that runs across the face of the lower six courses of brick. At some point in the life of the building, a stucco or plaster coat was applied directly to the face of the brickwork, in this particular area that stucco has delaminated and is now missing from the area where it was formerly covering the lower several courses of brickwork. Itâs hard to tell exactly where the old firebox used to exist within the omitted or void section of this chimney. The most obvious or apparent location has a wing wall at one side which is covered with several delaminated and flaking layers of paint. At any point in time when the brick fireplace was in use, it would not have made sense for that portion of the brick wall to be painted. This paint was probably applied after the fireplace was functionally damaged or inoperable beyond the point that the building owners or habitants were willing to repair. The paint on that wall is a likely sign that former building inhabitants chose not to repair the chimney or fireplace at the time when repairs were first needed. Instead it looks like the economic challenges that wreaked havoc in the local economies of most American urban centers such as Capitol Hill and Washington DC may have affected this house as well, probably in the mid 20th century. At that point, the building owners may have made the choice to forgo a repair and no longer continue using the fireplace, possibly due to better options ushered in by technological advances and / or related to financial or economic or market limitations. How Economic Forces Affect Construction and EngineeringItâs really interesting to study the economic forces and how they affect the construction and engineering and restoration industries. Sometimes, there are multiple variables that a simple supply and demand curve may not be able to illustrate the forces of all of those individual variables. If you look at almost any niche of the construction industry, you can see that very recently, since the pandemic of 2020, material prices have spiked, driven by unbridled corporate greed in America. Politicians right here in DC argue whether or not the increasing costs which affect most markets and most of the construction industry are driven by supply chain cost increases that are a natural effect of a pandemic or whether thereâs an embedded relationship tied to corporate greed. The answer is abundantly clear, at the same time as costs have spiked, corporations across America have experienced record profits as is apparent by their own clear admission. However, itâs also really interesting as prices have spiked, overall qulaiy has actually decreased, not increased. We can see the same trend in the construction market, companies like IDS, Infinity Design Solutions, who care and make a major effort to train and learn about the principles of historic restoration, are increasingly rarer, every year. In the picture below, you can see front lines left on the exposed face of the inside back wall of the old chimney which show the outline of the smoke shelf and brick opening header. That header is gone now. Itâs likely to have collapsed decades ago. The painted portions are very interesting and are a clue that supports the theory that the functional retirement of the chimney happen years ago, as described above. In the coming week we will examine more details of this historic brick masonry property and discuss some of the structural and mechanical implications of the masonry and related support elements. We also will take a look at an analysis between the functional elements of brick masonry and similar types of historic stone masonry, Including restoration processes, tuckpointing or repointing, durability and structural compressive strength analysis. How To Properly Maintain And Repair Historic BuildingsTo properly maintain, repair, and care for these historic buildings, a knowledge, interest and understanding of historic building principles is required. Here in Washington DC, historic masonry buildings are extremely expensive and the amount of financial loss caused by improper repointing and low quality construction is staggering. However, in addition to the direct financial value of the property, there is also a cultural loss when historic buildings are damaged. By comparison, consider neighboring poor cities, when historic buildings are damaged, itâs not just the loss of value to the property owner, thereâs also a loss to all inhabitants and visitors of a city, present and future, who care about architecture, history, and culture. We encourage all of our clients, and all readers of this article and to our blog in general, to prioritize the historic built environment of Washington DC and neighborhoods such as Capitol Hill, Dupont Circle, and Georgetown and become educated on on the difference between proper historic preservation versus improper work which leads to significant damage to the historic fabric of a building. From a conservation and preservation perspective, several approaches can be taken to improve conditions related to deteriorated historic brick masonry. Primarily, lime mortar brick joints and low temperature fired soft red clay bricks should be inspected and checked on a routine maintenance schedule, either seasonally or at least annually. If brick masonry is kept in good condition, the life of embedded wood elements can be significantly extended. Hire a professional contractor which specializes, understands and appreciates historic construction elements and buildings. You can learn a lot more on our blog. Feel free to check it out. If you have questions about the historic masonry of your building in Washington DC, fill out the webform below and drop us a line. We will be in touch if we can help. <p>The post Learning Masonry Structure Anatomy From Old Ruins â Part I first appeared on Infinity Design Solutions.</p> Via https://www.ids-dmv.com/masonry/learning-masonry-structure-anatomy-from-old-ruins-part-i/ |
About UsInfinity Design Solutions LLC (IDS) is a full service general contracting company in the heart of the Dupont Circle neighborhood of Washington, DC. We focus on repair and renovation of buildings and facilities in both historic designated neighborhoods and the commercial-zoned central business district of the city. Follow Us
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