Brick walls use a surprising amount of cement — not in the bricks, but in the mortar between them. Here is how to work it out from first principles.
Step by Step (1 m³, Modular Bricks, 1:6)
- Brick with mortar: 200 × 100 × 100 mm = 0.002 m³ → 1 ÷ 0.002 = 500 bricks
- Volume of bricks alone: 500 × (0.19 × 0.09 × 0.09) = 500 × 0.001539 = 0.77 m³
- Wet mortar: 1 − 0.77 = 0.23 m³
- Dry mortar: 0.23 × 1.27 = 0.29 m³
- Cement (1:6): 0.29 ÷ 7 = 0.0417 m³ × 1,440 = 60 kg ≈ 1.2 bags
- Sand: 0.29 × 6/7 = 0.25 m³ ≈ 8.8 cft
- With 15% for frogs and wastage: about 1.4 bags and 0.29 m³ of sand
Per Square Foot of Wall
| Wall | Volume per sq ft | Cement (with allowance) | Bricks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9 inch (230 mm) | 0.0214 m³ | about 0.03 bag | about 10 – 11 |
| 4.5 inch (115 mm), usually 1:4 | 0.0107 m³ | about 0.02 bag | about 5 – 5.5 |
For 1,000 sq ft of 9 inch wall: roughly 30 bags of cement and 10,000–11,000 bricks.
The Short Version
1 m³ of brickwork ≈ 500 modular bricks, 0.23 m³ wet mortar, 1.2–1.4 bags of cement and about 0.25 m³ of sand in 1:6. Switching to AAC with adhesive removes most of that mortar.
