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Brick tiles are a fascinating subject and one that has many different layers for you to indulge in. So get comfortable as I talk you through the ins and outs and outs of all things brick tiles!
The bricks used to form our brick tiles are made predominately of clay. There are other ingredients then thrown into the mixture such as sand, lime and iron oxide. Once all that has been added, the final hugely important addition is water. The clay used in the production of the brick tiles comes in a variety of different colours hence why we are able to offer you a range of grey brick slips, red bricks slips etc. A type of colour dye is also added to help to achieve the desired colour.
Following the preparation of the clay, there are different ways it can be manufactured to form a brick. One way is via a process known as wire – cutting. This is the process some our brick tiles such as our Tamisa, Welbourne and Winchester smooth brick tiles go through. The alternative route is moulding which is how the vast majority of our other brick tiles are produced. A large proportion of our bricks are imported from Belgium and the Netherlands.
Once the bricks land in our yard we quickly begin manufacturing them into brick tiles. The pack of bricks will be taken into the factory and the staff will begin cutting them. We have numerous state of the art brick cutting machines in our factory so can produce a vast quantity of brickslips in a day. Furthermore, we also have specialised brick cutting equipment that allows us to precisely manufacture corner brick slips, headers and stretcher reveals.
Once they are cut, cleaned and boxed; the brick tiles are moved into our picking & packing area. Our team will then accurately and carefully pick your order onto a pallet. Once they have picked the order and they will then check again look over it to ensure it is definitely correct. The boxes of brick tiles are then secured to the pallet. Finally, they are wrapped and banded to ensure their safety. We then send our brick slips direct your local distribution centre, ready for delivery to you!
At a separate factory, we produce our brick sample panels. The team at this factory will receive brick slips that have been cut by us. Using a specialised brick slip glue, they attach the brick tiles to a sample board. Our samples are completely free of charge to our customers. They consist of 3 brickslip pieces and 3 brick slip headers to give you a good idea on the true appearance of the product.
Installing your own brick tiles can be quite a fun challenge for you to take on. I am going to talk you through how to do so as per our installation guide.
The first step it sets out once you have gathered your equipment, is to prepare your surface. You do this by first ensuring that the area you wish to install your brick tiles is free from dust and debris. A great tool for this is our wire brush which will help you clean the area quickly and efficiently. Now you are ready to apply pro primer to the wall. This is designed to prime the substrate ready for the application of your brick slip adhesive. It is advisable to use a large soft paint brush or a roller brush to cover the entire area. Some walls may require a second layer of primer.
Continuing on from this, you’ll want to lay out your brick tiles on your wall using a spirit level and pencil to assist you. This will help you to gauge how your brickslips will fit on in the corners and edges of your feature wall. It is best practice to avoid leaving small gaps at the top, bottom or either side of your project wall so you may have to cut some of your brick slips to make them fit.
Now your surface preparations are all complete, it is time to move onto getting your adhesive ready. You’ll want to take your heavy duty mixing bucket and fill it with half a bag of Slip-Fix adhesive. Then add roughly 2.5 litres of clean cold water slowly to the adhesive mixing intermittently. It should take around 3 minutes for you to achieve a smooth slump free mixture. Now that it is ready you can start applying it to your wall using a notched trowel, making sure to only apply it over a small area at a time. Once the adhesive is on your wall, take your first brick slip and apply it firmly and evenly into the adhesive. The adhesive should sufficient grab to hold the brick tiles in place with minimal sag).
Once your first brick slip has been installed, take a 10mm brick slip spacer and push it into the adhesive. Following on from this, you should now take your next brickslip and repeat what you did with the first. Now continue applying spacers after every brick tiles across your bottom row. When it is time to move to the second row, you’ll have to apply spacers next to as well as below the brick slip in order to ensure they are spaced correctly throughout the feature wall.
Now your brick tiles are installed, it is time to move on to pointing them. You can use the same mixing bucket that you used for your adhesive although it is important to clean it. Pour the whole bag of Slip-Point brick slip mortar into the mixing bucket and slowly add 4-5 litres of cold clean water. It is highly advisable to use a mixing paddle in order to mix this thoroughly for the next 3-10 minutes. If you place the mortar on to your notched trowel and turn it upside down and it doesn’t fall off, you know its ready for use! At this stage load up your pointing gun until it is around 3/4 full. Carefully squeeze the trigger to keep the flow of mortar consistent and be sure to aim for the centre of the joint allowing to fill entirely before moving on.
Using a jointer you’ll want to smooth the mortar into the joints to give yourself a flush finish. There may be some residue left from the mortar on the face of your brick. This can be easily removed using your wire brush once it begins to dry. Be sure to be gentle as you brush your brick tiles as you don’t want to rub away the sand that gives it its great character. Once cleaned, the only thing left to do is to seal your brickslips. This is very easily done using our brick slip sealer and it helps keep your brick slips looking fresher for longer!
Brick Slips – Everything You Need To Know
Grey Brick Slips – Slips From Stock
Our sales team can help you with your choice of brick slip and can also assist with working the quantities that you require for your project out also, including Slip-Fix adhesive and Slip-Point mortar. Feel free to use our brick slip calculator on our site or, for more complex projects, please send your drawings over to sales@slipsfromstock.com and a member of the estimating team will respond within 24 hours. For large trade customers, we recommend visiting TBS Cladding Solutions. We want to thank you for choosing Slips From Stock as your brick slip supplier! So once your slips have been installed post them on Facebook or Instagram and we’ll send you an Amazon voucher! Our team works tirelessly around the clock. We are experts on all things brick slips and also offer a FREE brick slip matching service. Simply email us at sales@slipsfromstock.com or call us at 01889 227183.
