Brick wall water & frost damage:

This article describes & gives photographic examples of brick wall damage from frost & water, including cracking, spalling, & white or coloured mineral salt deposits: effloresence.

This article series explains types of damage to structural brick walls. We explain how to recognize, diagnose, & evaluate movement and cracks in brick walls and how to recognize brick wall bowing or bulging and cracking failures. Our page top photo shows water and frost damage to a building in Poughkeepsie, NY.

Brick Wall Damage by Water & Frost Damage to Brick Walls: Cracks, Effloresence, Spalling

Water & Frost Damaged, Broken Bulging Brick Walls

Frost damage to this brick wall (below) occurred due to roof spillage that runs down the building wall of this Poughkeepsie New York building, a college gymnasium presently serving other uses. Water entering the space behind this facing wythe of bricks on this wall has led to continued frost-push and risk of collapse of at least the external portions of the wall.

[Click to enlarge any image]

Cracked Bricks in Strutural Building Walls

The brick cracking on the facade of this New York City high rise building appears traceable to leaks on balconies at the abutment of balcony to the building structure.

Also see BRICK WALL THERMAL EXPANSION CRACKS.

Efflorescence Deposits on Brick Walls, Chimneys, Foundations

Efflorescence: white, yellow, brown deposits on Brick Walls, Chimneys, Foundations

Our photo (left) shows white mineral deposits on a structural brick wall. It is not a coincidence that nearby we also see lost mortar from joints in the same general area.

Controlling roof runoff to keep water from flowing over building walls is always a challenge, especially on larger, taller buildings where access to maintain the gutter system is more difficult.

But the most common cause of white fluffy mineral deposits on brick walls is water.

See EFFLORESCENCE & WHITE or BROWN DEPOSITS for details.

Spalling Brick Building Walls

The brick spalling shown on this Beacon NY church (below-left) was caused by roof spillage and rain splash-up against the foundation wall. The structural brick walls on the second building (below right) show frost spalling damage to the brick wall, especially around the building windows.

The brick surface loss (surface spalling and loss of the hard glazed finish) that occurs due to weathering, water and salt exposure (this is a retaining wall along the FDR expressway in Manhattan) leads to more severe frost damage that can include cracking and frost "pop out" of sections of individual bricks or entire brick portions of the structure.

Our second photo of brick spalling damage (below) shows that a portion of the wall has been rebuilt. So we have confirmation that water and frost damage can cause damage serious-enough that wall reconstruction is needed.

Water & Frost Damaged Brick Foundation Walls, Loose Bricks

Our photo above shows severe water and frost damage to the corner of a brick building, probably from roof spillage at the end of a gutter that was periodically clogged.

To stabilize these bricks against further movement and possibly more serious foundation damage, a mason would probably repair the corner using a combination of reconstruction of the most-loose (or missing) bricks, and tuck pointing the remaining open mortar joints.

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Continue reading at BRICK WALL STEEL LINTEL DAMAGE or select a topic from the closely-related articles below, or see the complete ARTICLE INDEX.

Or see these

Recommended Articles

• BRICK FOUNDATIONS & WALLS - home
  • BRICK STRUCTURAL WALLS LOOSE, BULGED
  • BRICK VENEER WALL AIR LEAKS
  • BRICK VENEER WALL DAMAGE ASSESSMENT
  • BRICK VENEER WALL FLOOD DAMAGE REPAIR
  • BRICK VENEER WALL FLOOD REPAIR CODES & STANDARDS
  • BRICK VENEER WALL LEAKS in FLOOD PRONE AREAS
  • BRICK VENEER WALL LOOSE, BULGED
  • BRICK VENEER WALL REPAIRS in FLOOD PRONE AREAS
  • BRICK WALL DRAINAGE WEEP HOLES - home
  • BRICK WALL FROST & WATER CRACKS, EFFLORESCENCE, SPALLING
  • BRICK WALL INSULATION RETROFIT
  • BRICK WALL LEAK REPAIRS
  • BRICK WALL REPAIR METHODS
  • BRICK WALL THERMAL EXPANSION CRACKS
  • BRICK WALL WOOD NAILER INSERTS
  • CHIMNEY BRICK / BLOCK SPALLING
  • CONCRETE or MASONRY DAMAGE TESTS
  • MASONRY FACADE / WALL, LINTEL & BROWNSTONE DAMAGE
• FOUNDATION CRACK DICTIONARY for evaluating foundation cracks and signs of foundation damage by examining the crack size, shape, pattern, and location.
• SOIL PROPERTIES & BUILDING FAILURES

Suggested citation for this web page

BRICK WALL FROST & WATER CRACKS, EFFLORESCENCE, SPALLING at InspectApedia.com - online encyclopedia of building & environmental inspection, testing, diagnosis, repair, & problem prevention advice.

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INDEX to RELATED ARTICLES: ARTICLE INDEX to BUILDING STRUCTURES

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Citations & References

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