Air bricks are those bricks which you will often see around the base of modern buildings with holes in them. The main function of an air brick is to provide ventilation under the floor of your building, or through cavity walls. These bricks can be made from clay or iron, but most modern air bricks you find are plastic.
You will find a well ventilated building with air bricks bricks around the base or in the walls is less prone to damp.
Given a build-up of moisture can cause serious and expensive problems for you to remedy, installing air bricks is a cheap and effective way of solving this problem in your home.
Do I Need to Retro-Fit Bricks?
Building techniques and standards have changed over time.
For example, the construction of homes with cavity walls is a fairly recent invention.
If you live in an older Victorian property the walls will be solid and there will be no cavity for moisture to build up inside.
If your property has been standing for many decades or even centuries without any problems with condensation or moisture build up, then it’s probably not worth fitting extras.
Doing so would be expensive and would not make any difference to ventilation levels within the house.
If you do have problems with ventilation, seek advice from a professional builder about your options.
Maintaining
Air bricks are constructed to be durable and last a lifetime. They typically do not need any maintenance from you.
Never be tempted to block them up to stop draughts getting under your floors, even just for the winter.
Check regularly to make sure that your air bricks haven’t got blocked up by leaves or garden debris.
If you are extending your house by building a conservatory or other type of structure, take advice about how to ventilate your home once your new extension is in place.
Many homeowners also purposely block air bricks to stop mice or insects getting into their home.
This is a mistake. Rather than blocking them completely, you should look for special mesh covers which let air circulate but stop anything larger getting into your home.
Buying and Fitting New Air Bricks
These materials are very cheap for you to get. Typically air bricks only cost a couple of pounds each to buy.
They are readily available in any large DIY store, so if you have some of these broken around the house this is the place to start looking for replacements.
Don’t worry about the whole house collapsing if you carefully chisel out a broken air brick and replacing it with another one; it’s a common concern but really shouldn’t be an issue.
If however you are thinking of adding in extra bricks to try to resolve problems you are having with condensation or poor ventilation, it is better to take advice from a professional bricklayer about where to install them. A professional should tell you what type of bricks you should use.
