Brick Veneer Chipping??

[Erby]

Any ideas as to the cause of the chipping (light brown areas) of the bricks.

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[Jim Katen]

Any ideas as to the cause of the chipping (light brown areas) of the bricks.

They look like little impact craters. Did the neighbor's kid get a bb gun for Christmas?

- Jim Katen, Oregon

[Rocon]

In historical brick buildings this type of spalling is from water.

It looks like the bottom course is very near or in contact with the soil. It also appears that there is some oxidation or efflorescence on the bottom course. Could you see a drainage plane behind the veneer or weep holes?

If the bricks are moist and it freezes you will see this type of surface damage.

[Scottpat]

Erby, last year I had a house with almost identical brick damage. The house was less than a year old. The owner discovered that the builder used cheap Mexican brick that was underfired and had impurities in the mix. You could walk around the house and see the chips on the ground. It was more pronounced along the mortar lines due to the mortar being harder than the brick.

I found a good deal of information at www.gobrick.com

[Kyle Kubs]

Any ideas as to the cause of the chipping (light brown areas) of the bricks.

They look like little impact craters. Did the neighbor's kid get a bb gun for Christmas?

- Jim Katen, Oregon

[:-bigmout - That was exactly my first thought also. Was this very localized or widespread on all the walls, high & low?

[kurt]

Crap in the brick mix.

[Chad Fabry]

Crap in the brick mix.

That's my vote too.

[Les]

I am with Kurt and Chad. Impurities in mix don't usually show up for a period of time and exposure.