Bricklayers jargon-buster

• Bond: the way a bricklayer places the bricks when building a wall. English bond, for example, involves alternate layers of bricks laid end to end and side to side.
• Cavity wall: this is the cosiest type of wall you can build. The bricklayer builds an inner layer, which supports the upper floors and roof, and an outer layer which is usually just cosmetic. The gap or cavity between the two walls is then filled with insulation to keep the house nice and warm.
• Course: if a bricklayer talks about a course, he or she is referring to a layer of bricks in a wall.
• Damp-proof course: this is simply a sheet of plastic the bricklayer places between two layers of bricks near the bottom of a wall. Without one of these, damp can rise up from the ground and damage the wall.
• Efflorescence: a kind of white staining that sometimes appears on bricks after rain. It's caused by salts washing out of the bricks, and if you want to avoid it your best bet is to make a point of asking your bricklayer to choose efflorescence-resistant bricks.
• Mortar: known to bricklayers as "muck" or "pug," mortar is the glue used to stick bricks together. Bricklayers usually mix mortar on the job to their own preferred consistency from a mixture of sand, cement and water.
• Repointing: when mortar starts crumbling or falling out of your brickwork, you need to find a bricklayer to do some repointing. This involves grinding out the old mortar and replacing it, leaving a tidy new finish. Repointing can also add strength to unsteady walls.
• Stretcher: the long side of a standard house brick is known by bricklayers as a stretcher. The simplest wall a bricklayer can build is known as a stretcher bond, and is made using layers of bricks laid end to end.

Bricklayer's tip:

The bond, or layout, of bricks makes a big difference to the appearance of a wall. Before getting any work done by a bricklayer, take a look at some brickwork to help you choose which bond you want. The most popular bonds are English (aka Flemish), which involves the bricklayer placing bricks both end to end and side to side.