Brick Calculator

Why Contractors Lose Money Here

Bricks are bought by the thousand and broken by the hundred. Ordering on a rough "500 per cubic metre" for every brick size, or forgetting the openings, leads to either a half-truck of surplus or a stop while more arrives.

Real Site Example

A 10 m × 3 m one-brick wall (230 mm) in standard bricks, no openings: volume 6.9 m³; bricks with 10 mm joints = 6.9 ÷ (0.24 × 0.125 × 0.085) = 2,706, plus 5% = 2,842. Wet mortar = 6.9 − 2,706 × 0.00198 = 1.53 m³; dry = 1.53 × 1.15 × 1.33 = 2.34 m³; 1:6 mix: cement 0.335 m³ = 482 kg ≈ 9.6 bags (order 10), sand 2.0 m³ (71 cft).

Professional Best Practices

Measure the bricks actually delivered (ten in a row) — local bricks are often smaller than nominal, which changes the count per m³. Stack bricks close to the work to cut breakage.

Engineering Checklist

• Deduct doors, windows and other openings
• Use the real size of the bricks delivered
• 1:6 mortar for one-brick walls, 1:4 for half-brick walls is common practice — follow the specification
• Soak clay bricks before laying so they do not suck water from the mortar
• Record breakage on arrival and on site

Government & Standards References

• IS 1077:1992 — Common burnt clay building bricks (modular size 190 × 90 × 90 mm)
• IS 2212:1991 — Code of practice for brickwork
• CPWD specifications — brickwork and mortar mixes

How Experienced Contractors Handle This

Estimators take brickwork quantities from the BOQ wall by wall, deduct openings, and set a brick and mortar budget per floor that the site tracks against deliveries.