Making bricks from construction waste
Waste Bricks are designed, tested and made by us using waste clays and chalk blended with other by-products.
When roads are dug up for repairs to services and foundations are dug for new housing in clay rich areas, these precious resources are often removed from site. Saving and re-using raw clay and chalk materials can unlock the hidden wealth and social riches of a place, with potential to build affordable homes and community assets, according to the individual and collective requirements of local people.
Read more about this at: Building community from the ground up
Local Works Studio have been testing and prototyping ways in which waste materials can be added to clay to produce a traditional fired brick. We have been working with a traditional brick company, making bricks with waste to match the historic colours and textures of traditional bricks.
Every year in the UK 23,220,000 tonnes of excavated soil (including clays) are sent to landfill from construction sites, and the shortfall of new bricks in the UK is 1.4 billion a year.
The addition of certain waste materials to clay lowers the need for higher-firing temperatures in the kiln, reducing the amount of fuel required to make the bricks. Some of the bricks we produce also absorb carbon dioxide after firing, which contributes to a harder final product and further reduced carbon footprint.
