The Water Test...

And there you have it a Reverse Brick Veneer Wall with window scaled down for convenience.


There was some tricky placement for the plastic sheet window, after nailing in the lasting of the MDF cladding we trimmed off the window with strips of MDF to give it a better seal for the water test.


A plastic sheet was used for the window instead of perspex, generally because it was easier to source and more manageable.


For the cladding we ended up buying a 5mm sheet of MDF and cutting it into strips about 200mm wide and had them over lapping by about 20mm.


Once we completed the masonry wall we needed to wash away the cement that fell on the pavers before it dried (crappy stuff to get on anything). Insulation was to follow next, but unfortunately none of us actually took a photo so imagine old pillows for insulation in the space between the brick wall and what is soon to a weatherboard cladding wall.


800mm x 85mm x 75mm brand new flat bar lintel in action.


The cement we purchased didn't seem to have enough sand in the mix, so I thought it was rubbish and probably would purchase the mixture separately and measure in the parts myself next time, I think you would get a better result.The lintel held soundly for the next row of bricks.


After the mortar had cured enough we were able to cement in the steel flat bar lintel so we could bridge the opening for the window.

Phase one completed we left the mortar to cure for a few days before commencing with the rest of the wall.



Before going any further with the bricks we allowed time to let the mortar set so the lintel that will support the next row of bricks will be consolidated more efficiently. So the rest of the timber framing around the opening could be erected in the mean time. Plus a couple of angel brackets were added for extra support at the bottom of the frame.



Now comes the tricky part of creating an opening for the window, this requires some skill to keep the wall plumb.
As you progress with laying the bricks you need to incorporate brick ties for extra structural support for lateral forces. We used galvanized angel bracket for this exercise because no water will be penetrating the weather board external wall, so you didn't need the regular brick ties.

Once you got your mortar ready its time to lay a bed of cement down to place your first row of bricks. For real accuracy you really need a spirit level but we didn't have one so the trusty string line had to do.

Next the cement was mixed with water to give us a nice mud to adhere the bricks. You don't want the mud to dry or wet otherwise it very hard to work with. Its almost like making a bread mix, where you make a well in the centre so the liquid doesn't go every where and also you don't need a container as well.

The timber frame needed to be erected first so the masonry wall had structural support. This will allow you to level the wall off from the frame with the string to give you a plumb wall all the way up.


Started off with a chipboard base to keep the mortar cement off my pavers(nasty stuff to get off).
Next step was to prep the materials by laying them out ready to be assembled. Materials and tools used for the job were: Timber , bricks, brickies trowel, chisel, shovel, lug hammer leveling string, lintel ,cement, screws, nails and MDF boards.

We were able to score some second hand bricks from a company in West Melbourne called 'Paddy's bricks' the owner was very helpful. When I was there, around the back is a huge yard with piles of bricks and 3 blokes sitting down chipping away the mortar. Tough going. The rest of the materials were sourced from Bunnings to save time.