Glossary

Back Filling – rough masonry built behind a facing or between two faces or brick work in spaces between structural timbers

Course – one of the continuous horizontal layers of units, bonded with mortar in masonry

Face – the exposed surface of a wall or masonry unit or the surface of a unit designed to be exposed in the finished masonry

Furring – A method of finishing the interior face of a masonry wall to provide space for insulation, prevent moisture transmittance, or to provide a level surface for finishing

Kiln – a furnace oven or heated enclosure used for burning or firing brick or other clay material

Louver – an opening fitted with sloping slats so as to admit light and air but shed rain

Masonry – brick, stone, concrete, etc or masonry combinations thereof, bonded with mortar

Mortar – a plastic mixture of cementitious materials, fine aggregate (usually sand) and water

Quoin – a projecting right angle masonry corner

Shale – clay which has been subjected to high pressures until it has hardened

Soffit – the underside of a beam or arch

Vitrification – the condition resulting when kiln temperatures are sufficient to fuse grains and close pores of a clay product, making the mass impervious

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