Real clay brick slips vs pre-cast brick slips
It only takes a quick google search to find that there are varying types of brick slips and each one has a varying cost. We get a few enquiries asking why our brick slips are more expensive than some that they’ve found elsewhere on the internet. This is generally down to the type of brick slips we offer and the work that has to go into producing them. We pride ourselves on having the best quality brick slips in the UK. We would highly recommend getting samples of different brick slips before making a decision on which ones are right for your project. Brick slips tend to be in one of two groups Pre-cast brick slips and clay brick slips. Pre-cast brick slips are made by using a mixture of materials such as concrete and plaster to fill brick shaped moulds. Clay brick slips are made by cutting the textured faces of clay bricks to create a 20mm thick brick slip.
These brick slips are made from concrete and have extra ingredients added such as sand and colour dyes. This mixture is then pressed at a high temperature into moulds that replicate the look of real bricks. As they are made from a replica mould, there is a repeated pattern to the bricks. This isn’t too bad when only covering a small area but when installed on a large project, the pattern is quite noticeable and takes away from the look of original bricks.
Manufactured from a coloured gypsum plaster. These brick slips are made in a similar way to the concrete brick slips but offer the benefit of being extremely lightweight and easy to install. They are available in various colours and can be painted as you would with normal plaster. Like concrete brick slips, as they are made using a mould, there is a repeated pattern that is noticeable.
The next step up the brick slip scale are new brick slips. These are made from real clay bricks and have the complete look and feel of real bricks once installed. There is more variation from brick to brick than with the cheaper options but new bricks do tend to still have a level of uniformity to them as opposed to our next option.
At the top of the brick slip tree sits reclaimed brick slips. Reclaimed brick slips are made from original reclaimed bricks and have the largest amount of variation due to the effects of ageing and weathering that the bricks have experienced in their previous use. You won’t find two reclaimed brick slips that are exactly the same. There is a lot more work involved in the production of a reclaimed brick slip from the demolition of the original building to the brick selection and cutting process. This is reflected in the price of reclaimed brick slips but the quality and original look can’t be achieved with any other type of brick slips.
We specialise in reclaimed brick slips To see our full range of brick slips, head over to our shop