B etter buildings

London (Ontario)

C A S E S T U DY N U M B E R 5 7

BRICK REPAIRS TO TWO 1960’s BuildingS

Introduction
Dating from the 1960's, these two,
six-storey rental apartment
buildings contain sixty-six units
each, with roughly 11,500 sq ft per
floor.The exterior wall system
consists of 96 mm (4”) brick
veneer, 12mm - 25 mm (1/2” - 1”)
air space, 150 mm (6”) back-up
masonry block, 25mm (1")
beadboard (EPS) insulation, and
drywall. The structure is steel
frame with concrete floor slabs.
Drawings for the buildings were not
available.
On the east, west and south
elevations, on both buildings, at
View of back elevation after repairs
grade level, are single and double
garage openings. Garage overhead
doors are flush with the building Later that year, at the request of consultant conducted an
face, and the garage space fully the building owner, a restoration independent investigation, produced
occupies the building footprint. contractor completed two a report with recommendations and
Between garage openings are exploratory test openings on the costs, prepared design documents
masonry brick veneer pilasters brick veneer in an effort to for the repairs, tendered the work,
surrounding a central steel column. ascertain the cause of the brick and undertook periodic
The masonry above each of the deterioration. construction review. The repairs
garage doors is supported by a were completed five months later, at
A consultant was then asked by the
steel shelf angle. a cost of $ 64,419.
owner to review and provide
In 2003, the building manager noted comment on the test openings, and
brick deterioration and cracking on to conduct an additional
the masonry pilasters and above investigation, if warranted, on the
the garage openings. cladding condition in general. From
February to June, 2004, the
Observations The other factor was the absence
of soft joints between the ends of
The consultant's investigation
the shelf angles and the brick
included additional invasive
masonry pilaster below. When the
openings and noted the following:
shelf angle displaced downwards, it
• Brick deterioration and vertical made contact with the brick, thus
cracking was observed on most applying pressure on the masonry
masonry pilasters, on all veneer pilaster. The brick veneer
elevations of both buildings. The was not intended to be a load-
crack patterns were bearing element.
concentrated at the junction of
The cracking and spalling around
the upper pilaster and the
the tops of the masonry pilasters
overhead brick wall veneer.
was consistent with brick units that
• Mortar deterioration and severe have been overstressed.
brick spalling was observed at the
base of several of the masonry At the test openings made at the
veneer pilasters. brick pilaster bases, considerable
corrosion of the main building steel
• Limited cracking within the Brick spalling and cracking at top of pilaster
columns was observed, ranging
mortar joints was observed at between 10% and 20% loss of
mid-span of the garage openings. Problem Analysis section. The building columns
• Moderate to severe, moisture Based on the consultant's extend approximately 150mm
staining of brick veneer was investigation, the majority of the below grade (asphalt).
evident over much of the facades. deterioration of brick masonry
units was occurring at the junction For buildings of this vintage, wall
• No weep/vent holes or vertical assembly protection and proper
of the masonry veneer pilasters and
control joints were observed in “rainscreen” design and
the overhead brick veneer. There
the brickwork. construction of the building
was very little deterioration or
• The brick lintels (shelf angles) distress observed on the brick envelope was generally not well
over the garage are steel veneer over the garage openings. understood or implemented as
sections. The shelf angles are consistently as it is today. In this
attached to a steel transfer beam Based on test openings, the shelf case, the lack of provision for
above, which was buried in the angles over the garage openings through-wall drainage allowed entry
wall assembly. Steel “H” columns, were supported at multiple and accumulation of moisture in the
contained within the brick locations along the span by steel wall cavities, including the pilasters.
pilasters, support the steel beam. transfer beams within the wall
assembly.
• The connection between the
shelf angle and steel beam The cause of the brick distress at
consisted of stub 'I' beam the pilaster tops was due partly to
sections bolted to the steel beam the connection detail between the
above. shelf angle and the transfer beams.
Typically, shelf angle connections are
• No movement or “soft” joints
either direct bolted into masonry or
exist between steel shelf angles
concrete, or welded to steel back
and the masonry brick veneer
up. The use of an intermediate
pilasters directly beneath them.
bolted element introduced additional
• Brick ties, 8 gauge "L" hook-type, flexibility in the system, which over
were observed to be in fair to time caused the shelf angles to
good condition. rotate outwards, and down.

Additional repair work at corners

Recommendations
• Install movement
for Repair “soft” joints at all
Based on limited capital funding for shelf angle/pilaster
repair, the consultant recommended intersections
the following scope of work:
• Introduce vertical
• Remove all masonry brick at control joints near
pilaster locations the building corners
• Prepare (by abrasive blast by sawcutting.There
cleaning), reinforce where were none, originally.
necessary, and apply two coats of • Introduce shelf angle
a cement-based mortar containing flashings and weep
epoxy resin to the lower portion holes at the top and Brick and steel repair work
of building columns bottom of the rebuilt
• Modify the steel shelf angles over brick pilasters
the garages with a new support
detail
• Replace damaged/deteriorated
brick units on all elevations
• Replace brick pilasters with new
brick. Colour matching the old
brick was a problem, going
through several sample rounds.
Entire pilasters were replaced to
achieve uniformity.

Completed work
Design and Costs
The pre-tender budget for the project was estimated by the consultant to be
Construction $120,000. Invited bids varied from $57,535 to $116,175.
• The design documents were
competitively tendered. After considerable review, the project was awarded to the lowest bidder.
Tendering and contract award The project was completed at a cost of $64,419 plus GST, due to the additional
was completed within two brick unit replacement. Final project breakdown was:
months.Work commenced in
Mobilization/Demobilization $1,600
August 2004 and ended by
November 2004.The consultant Pilaster/Steel Column Repairs $20,385
provided periodic construction Vertical Control Joints $6,600
review. No significant problems
developed during construction Shelf Angle Modifications $1,250
other than additional brick Brick Removal/Replacement
replacement at upper floor levels, 2882 Bricks @ $12.00 ea. $34,584
due to increased exposure.Work
was performed using snorkel lifts
only, no scaffolding or swing
stages.

Contacts
Owner: If you have any comments,
Icorr Properties International Inc. or would like to submit your
[email protected] project for publication, please
contact:
Contractor:
Weathertech Restoration [email protected]
Services Ltd.
For more information about
Consultant: building envelopes solutions
and best practices, visit the
Concentric Associates
Canada Mortgage and Housing
International Inc.
Corporation (CMHC) Web site at
[email protected]
www.cmhc.ca

Back elevation after repairs.

©2005, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation

OUR WEBSITE ADDRESS: www.cmhc.ca

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