When it comes to Lego bricks, it is very difficult to separate the seeds of popularization of a new product from its actual working qualities. Even the term itself, using the name of a famous toy company, does its best to simplify concepts, which is not always beneficial. Especially when it comes to professionals or advanced amateurs.

To slightly dispel the childish image of a wonderful construction product, let’s call a spade a spade.

So, the term brick-Lego, in literal translation from English it sounds more detailed and complete - interlocking brick, which means interlocking bricks, interlocking brick, that is, a brick with a lock.

Now, when discussing and searching for information regarding price, characteristics and application technologies, the possibilities are significantly expanding, especially for those who decide to make Lego bricks with their own hands.

Simplicity and financial benefit

What is so good about a house built from Lego bricks? Of course, with simplified installation technology. Indeed, if we touch on this very costly aspect of any construction project, then saving time, and with it, paid man-hours when building walls building structure differ significantly to a lesser extent. To this can be added the aspect that the number of highly paid professionals can be reduced to a minimum.

This does not mean that botanists will build your house in their free time; a professional mason is still needed. But the main work, such as lifting material, laying straight sections, mixing glue and applying it, can be easily handled by sane handymen or students. Their prices are several times lower than those of professionals, and the quality of work when laying Lego bricks will still be high.

Well, if the amount of work is small, or the construction time is not of fundamental importance, you can always try to do everything yourself. Here, in addition to reducing monetary costs, the pleasure from the work done and the result will also be added.

If we turn to the technology of making Lego bricks, and do not go into details of the composition and proportion of the mixture from which it is made, a very simple circuit. We have a filler - sand, screenings, shell rock and a binder, cement. All this is thoroughly mixed, water, plasticizers and other chemicals are added, after which, using a matrix and a press, this mass is formed according to the planned dimensions.

As a result, after a short drying, we obtain bricks of varying strength and appearance, which, depending on the technical and decorative indicators, we use for the construction of load-bearing walls, interior partitions, buried structures and so on. In principle, wherever ordinary brick is used, the only difference is that there are much more types of pressed Lego bricks.

Features of Lego brick laying, or a fast start-up for beginning builders

At the beginning of this article, it was no coincidence that we were ironic about botanist scientists. We in no way wanted to offend anyone, but events recent years Due to financial turmoil, people are increasingly being driven out of their familiar jobs, forcing them to look for themselves in new, more profitable and in-demand industries. One of these niches was and remains construction, in particular, the work of a mason.

It is difficult to imagine that upon waking up on a difficult Monday morning, a person decides to pick up a trowel and immediately begin producing highly paid volumes. To become a qualified mason, you need to turn out dozens of cubes under wise guidance, make and correct a bunch of “jambs,” and spend a lot of time and effort. Lego bricks will help a beginner save this resource and quickly graduate from the ranks to an honorary officer.

The fact is that it is almost impossible to lay interlocking bricks unevenly. You just need to master a small theoretical part, be careful and diligent. Everything else will happen almost without your participation.

Here is a short video that clearly explains the main aspects of laying Lego bricks.

So what do we see? In a short period of time, a nimble Malaysian worker laid 154 bricks to the sound of upbeat music. At standard sizes 250x125x65 of one piece we have 0.3 cubic meters of masonry. Prices for masonry different in the territory of our huge country, but for the basic minimum you can charge, for example, 2000 rubles per 1 cubic meter. It turned out - about 600 rubles in earnings. Not bad?

The most difficult and responsible thing is to lay the first row; this requires precise leveling and correction of each brick. When constructing the building box, this place will be the corners of the future building. If you have no experience, it is better to entrust this matter to a professional. But then you just need to follow the laying scheme, don’t forget about the reinforcement and embedded elements - things will go much faster.

Of course, it is impossible to grasp all the details of wall construction on the fly, but with the desire and due perseverance, the learning process, and with it the paid or saved result, will come much faster.

Comparison of technical characteristics. Lego brick vs classic

On the Internet you can find many opponents of Lego technology who leave negative reviews. But take a closer look - basically all the shortcomings of Lego bricks are far-fetched and have nothing to do with practice. Most likely, these are the same professionals who are terribly upset about the reduction in prices and the arrival of new people in their business. Let's compare a Lego brick with its regular fired counterpart in terms of basic technical indicators.

Data taken from open sources. As starting point we took the strength of brick. It may vary depending on the production technology. M150 is the recommended minimum strength for the construction of load-bearing structures.

What conclusion can be drawn from this blitz analysis?

1. With the same strength, the weight of Lego bricks is less. This means that the cost of lifting material to the work site will fall, and the structure itself will be lighter. This, in turn, reduces the requirements for overall bearing capacity design, which will ultimately affect the reduction in the cost of the project as a whole.
2. The water absorption of pressed Lego brick is 2.5 times less than usual. This means that its service life in unstable winter climates middle zone will be higher, and the humidity in the room with the same ventilation schemes will be lower.

Otherwise, everything is the same, which means there are no special obstacles to the use of Lego bricks.

Now a few words about the price at which you can actually buy both materials. At the factory it will be approximately the same and will range from 10 to 15 rubles per piece. But it would be incorrect to talk about the cost without taking into account transportation costs and the costs of unloading and loading operations. These are integral associated expenses that must be calculated based on the conditions in which construction takes place.

Therefore, it is difficult to analyze here, but all other things being equal, Lego brick has one undeniable advantage - it can be manufactured directly on site, thereby significantly reducing all associated costs and time. Yes, this is not a reservation, during the season there is a queue at the factories for bricks, and this is simple and wasteful in terms of timing.

DIY Lego brick. Brief overview of equipment and manufacturing technology

Before you think about organizing production, you need to accurately weigh the pros and cons, including cost and cost data in the analysis. The first and most important thing to understand is scale and organization. technological process. Brick making is not a garage-sized job. This process is large-scale, requires large production areas and precise logistics for the supply of materials and delivery of finished products. This is if we are talking about business.

If you make Lego bricks for yourself, you need to calculate the profitability of this idea based on the volume of your construction and the cost of production at the construction site.

According to standard technology for making Lego bricks, the following composition and proportions of the mixture are recommended:

1. Sand – 10%
2. Crushed stone screening – 70%
3. Cement M500 – 20%

Cost of materials:

1. Sand – 520 rub/t
2. Elimination – 185 rub/t
3. Cement – ​​175 rub/bag

Consumption and estimated cost for 1 ton of mixture

1. Sand – 52 rub.
2. Elimination – 130 rub.
3. Cement – ​​700 rub.

1 ton of mixture produces 285 bricks. Costs for purchasing materials – 882 rubles. The cost of one unit is 3 rubles 09 kopecks. The number of finished Lego bricks per shift is from 900 to 4000 pieces in 8 hours (depending on the power of the machine).

The price does not take into account:

1. Possibility of purchasing unpackaged cement, which is significantly cheaper
2. The cost of plasticizer, they vary in consumption and efficiency. This needs to be analyzed separately.
3. Price transport services for delivery of materials
4. Workers' salaries
5. Equipment depreciation and maintenance
6. Cost of electricity if the press is not manual

Equipment for the production of Lego bricks at Russian market presented in a wide range. The simplest and cheapest solution to the problem is hand press for molding and a small concrete mixer. The cost of this device will be around 45-65 thousand rubles. Of course, you can’t count on significant production volumes in manual mode, here we're talking about about 500-800 pieces per shift when working intensively with a partner.

Obvious advantages manual equipment– low cost, compactness, mobility and the possibility of collateral use. For example, having on the farm manual machine for the production of Lego bricks, you can provide yourself with briquettes for heating from wood sawdust.

The cost of the equipment directly depends on the force produced by the press and the amount of automation that speeds up the production process. Also, the higher this indicator, the better the quality of the products. The cost of such equipment starts from 200 thousand rubles for the simplest Hydraulic Press with a productivity of 1,500 pieces per shift and reaches 7-8 million for complete lines with an output of up to 10,000 products per shift.

Semi-automatic machine

Serious manufacturers offer services for calculating and drawing up a business plan for such production, develop mixture recipes based on local conditions, and provide technical support to the manufacturer at all stages of operation.

Automatic equipment with high productivity

The point of this article is not limited to advertising of individual manufacturers and does not provide a 100% solution to get rich quick. Here we tried to formalize an idea, a dream direction for a person with an active life position. Reviews on numerous forums are also not the ultimate truth; here you can easily fall into advertising techniques that sometimes do not provide real information.

The main thing is to be persistent common sense and determination, and the rest will follow and will definitely work out.

Along with ceramic and silicate bricks, hyperpressed bricks have already become commonplace on the market. building materials. And here it is brother Lego bricks are a new product that is rapidly gaining popularity.

She explains herself affordable price and its special characteristics, which will be discussed in this article.

Features of the material

Bricks are made by pressing and steaming. Thanks to special design molds, Lego bricks receive through holes and grooves for adhesion to each other.

What is it made from?

Even crushed bricks can serve as raw materials for the production of such bricks. construction waste: old brick, concrete, clay. But to receive quality material They use waste from crushing crushed stone and limestone rocks - the so-called screening.

Lego bricks may also contain sand, volcanic dust, plasticizing additives and pigments. High grade cement is added as a binder.

Note! Components and their proportions different manufacturers may differ, therefore the characteristics of the material will be different. When purchasing, you must study documents on the composition and testing of the material for compliance with basic parameters.

As an example, I will give the composition of the mixture used to make standard Lego bricks:

Mixture components	Content in %, notes
	From 85 to 92%. The finer the screening fraction, the better the quality of the product. It will be highly durable and ideally shaped with smooth edges.
	From 8 to 15% in a dry mixture.
	Their use is not required. Adding to the mixture helps produce products in a variety of colors.
	Various synthetic additives increase the moisture and frost resistance of bricks and improve their characteristics.

Specifications

Dry numbers will tell nothing to a person ignorant of building materials. So let's compare hyper-pressed Lego bricks with the more famous and familiar ceramic bricks. Its strength and durability are household level known to everyone.

As you can see, the characteristics are quite comparable. But our brick is lighter and absorbs less water.

The thermal conductivity of hyper-pressed products is higher, which means that they retain heat less well. But the presence of holes in which air is sealed after the construction of the building reduces this figure to 0.4-0.56 W/(m K). What is comparable to similar characteristics hollow ceramic bricks.

As for sizes, the dimensions of Lego products are standard:

But if you wish, you can also find large Lego bricks or order their production.

Advantages and advantages over similar materials

The main advantages of this brick over similar ones are its design features. No wonder it received such a name, which is uniquely associated with the popular children's construction set.

So, what advantages does this design provide:

• Easy to assemble due to the presence of grooves and the ideal geometry of each product. The bricks are press-molded in dies, so they are all completely identical. It’s easy to build a wall or partition with your own hands, saving on hiring a mason.

• Holes in bricks can be used both for laying pipes, wires and other communications, and for adding rigidity to the structure. Concrete is poured into them, which, when hardened, connects all the rows.

• Masonry does not require cement mortar - it is done using glue. It is applied with a construction gun, as shown in the following photo. As a result, jointing is not required, which saves time and costs for large quantities of mortar. A general form masonry benefits from smooth seams and the presence of a beveled chamfer on each product.

Would you take building material seriously, appearance which resembles the bricks of a well-known designer? Many of you will probably answer no. However, in reality we are talking about quite effective material, which can be used for the construction of critical structures that must withstand heavy loads. Today we will tell you in more detail about the brands and parameters of these building elements.

Like the parts of a familiar construction set that have protruding parts and recesses, this building material works on the same principle. In fact, using it, we assemble the same construction set, only we build from it not toy houses, but real houses. At the same time, the technical characteristics of the material allow it to withstand heavy loads, which makes it possible to create from it both internal and load-bearing walls. This material is also widely used in finishing and decoration.

Material composition

Lego bricks are based on limestone screenings or sand. Moreover, the smaller the fragments of these rocks, the better the strength characteristics. Portland cement is used as a binding element. The blocks also contain water and dyes (the latter give the material an impressive appearance). All this is fastened together using special equipment using the hyper-pressing method.

Specifications

• Standard block sizes are 250x165x65 and 300x150x100 millimeters;
• Density – 1550 kilograms per cubic meter;
• Strength grade – M100-M200;
• Thermal conductivity - 0.4-0.45 W/(m K).

Advantages of building material

• Strength allows Lego bricks to be successfully used in the construction of multi-story buildings;
• Water absorption is only 5-6 percent, which makes this material suitable for use in regions with a humid climate;
• Due to low level absorption of water, the latter does not accumulate in the structure of the brick and does not destroy it when the temperature drops and ice forms. The material can withstand two hundred freeze-thaw cycles;
• Machines for the production of these building materials are very compact, therefore, as in the case of foam concrete, this type bricks can be placed directly at the work site;
• The weight of the material is very insignificant, so its use does not require a buried massive foundation;
• The cavities inside the material allow for simple wiring;
• The brick has an attractive appearance and a large number of colors. After installation, a wall made from it can be used without further finishing;
• The laying speed of this building block is several times higher than that of ordinary bricks;
• Since these building materials fit together very tightly, the glue consumption is extremely small (Manufacturers say that it will take less than a quarter of a hundredweight of adhesive mass to process 500 bricks);
• Quite a cheap building material.

Important! In numerous videos, the process of laying this brick is shown very simply and it is repeatedly stated that to successfully build walls in this way, you do not need the knowledge of masons and, in general, anyone can do this. However, many authors of such videos pursue their own commercial interests, exploiting the theme of ease of installation. In fact, it is advisable to study the instructions in advance and practice masonry.

Flaws

In general on topics technical specifications of this material, which are already known today, it has almost no disadvantages. The only downside is the fact that the material is still new, which means there is no experience working with it, as well as long-term operation the last one, on this moment simply no. At the same time, an important disadvantage may also be the fact that such bricks are produced not by large companies, but by small “garage” manufacturers. Consequently, there is no streamlined production or certificates guaranteeing quality yet. And the buyer can, with equal probability, actually purchase quality product, and spend money on something that will disappoint him later.

It should also be noted that this technology was initially used in South America- a part of the world that is radically different from our country in its climate. Therefore, in the future there is a non-zero probability that this method During the construction, problems may arise that will greatly reduce its popularity among our compatriots.

Features of working with Lego bricks

• When laying these blocks, the space is filled not with a cement-sand mixture, but with a special adhesive composition. This is another advantage, since between the blocks there remains minimum distance, and the cold bridge is not so pronounced;
• This material is often used to construct fence posts. In this case, as the manufacturers assure, you don’t even need glue. All that is enough for this is to lay out 5-6 rows, and pour concrete into the space formed in the center, having previously inserted strong reinforcement there. The process is somewhat reminiscent of creating stone fence, but without formwork and happening much faster;
• Holes in this material can either be used for reinforcement or simply reduce thermal conductivity due to the presence of air pockets. Therefore, with the same masonry thickness, a wall made of light bricks will be warmer;
• This type of brick can also be used as permanent formwork at monolithic construction. To do this, it is necessary to lay two layers of masonry at a distance from each other. This distance fits metal fittings, after which the concrete mixture is poured. As a result, we get a wall with high strength and visual characteristics. After all, it does not require additional finishing, since the brick itself looks very beautiful;
• Apply glue solution on the surface of the brick is best done with a special gun.

Conclusion

It should be understood that the increased growth in popularity of this type of brick is a consequence of the active work of equipment manufacturers to create it and finished bricks. First of all, brick is promoted in the information space as a fashionable business idea from which you can earn a lot of money. And judging by the growth in the number of “garage” productions, such promotion works quite well. However, this does not negate the advantages that this material really has, and it is definitely worth considering it as an option for use. As a last resort, you can try it out not during the construction of a house, but during the construction of courtyard buildings.

For those who follow the latest building materials and do not want to lag behind the improved construction technologies It will be interesting to learn about a new invention for building walls - Lego bricks. The name of the blocks is given due to their special design, which has grooves and protrusions (that is, locks) for high-quality and perfectly smooth connection of elements into a single structure. Find out how this happens in practice in our detailed video below.

Important: Lego bricks are most often used for facial decoration, devices interior walls at home or for decorative buildings. But with the help of such blocks you can build an entire house, if you follow the technology of laying the elements. It involves laying out two parallel brick walls from Lego blocks and then filling free space self-foaming substances (polystyrene, polyurethane, concrete). As a result we get foam concrete house framed by walls made of Lego bricks. Warm, comfortable and does not require additional exterior finishing.

Benefits of Lego bricks

Blocks with lock connection have parameters similar to standard bricks. However, this is where the similarity ends, which forms a number of advantages of the material. So, the main advantages of Lego bricks are:

• High speed and ease of installation. For example, laying m3 of standard brick blocks requires about an hour of work. During the same time, you can lay 3 m3 of Lego bricks.
• Low consumption of building materials. Installation of walls from Lego blocks does not require preparation cement-sand mortar in large quantities. The blocks are mounted with special glue, the consumption of which is 25 kg/500 pcs. blocks.
• The water absorption of Lego blocks is only 5%, while standard bricks are more hygroscopic and absorb water at 14%.
• The density of Lego blocks is twice that of ceramic bricks. This means that a wall built from such material will have an ideal appearance.
• Construction from new material can be carried out in any climate zone. Lego bricks can withstand over 50 freeze-thaw cycles.
• Special locking holes in the blocks make it easy to reinforce walls and then pour concrete into them.

Important: filling holes with concrete should be done in stages. No more than 6 rows of blocks at a time. If you neglect this recommendation and pour the solution into more rows at a time, the masonry may lose its vertical or horizontal geometry.

In addition, these same locking holes make it possible to lay communications without additional wall cutting.

Installation of Lego blocks into a single wall

Preparatory work

In order to lay Lego bricks, as shown in the video below, you need to do everything efficiently preparatory work, namely:

• Prepare everything necessary tools for masonry, including a special gun for applying adhesive to the surface of the blocks.
• Purchase required quantity blocks plus a margin of 5-10%. This will allow you to safely reject elements if necessary.
• Purchase fittings in accordance with project documentation. The reinforcement is taken with a cross-section of 12-20 mm.
• Prepare special glue at the rate of one bag per 500-600 blocks.
• In addition, all Lego blocks should be cleaned of construction debris and dust. Since it is recommended to lay only clean blocks.

Important: in order to avoid rapid drying of the glue when laying Lego bricks, it is recommended to pre-wet the building elements. Lego blocks are laid on a prepared and waterproofed foundation.

Glue preparation

Laying Lego blocks requires a special adhesive for ceramic tiles. It is diluted with water according to the instructions. The dry mixture is gradually introduced into the required amount of water and mixed with a construction mixer. The consistency of the glue should resemble sour cream.

Important: it is better to prepare no more than 10 liters of the adhesive mixture at a time to prevent it from hardening during work.

Bookmark the first row

The biggest difficulty in installing Lego bricks is the installation of the first row of blocks. It is he who will subsequently determine the evenness of the entire masonry and the ease of its installation. Therefore, if possible, it is better to entrust this stage of work to professionals. They will lay the foundation, and then the master will be able to cope on his own. If the work will be done with your own hands from start to finish, then when laying the first row of Lego blocks you should adhere to the following recommendations:

• Laying begins from the corners of the future building. On each side, three bricks should be laid in a row, carefully monitoring the evenness of each element using a building level.

Important: the first row is laid on adhesive composition, but with a thicker consistency. Next, the bricks are held together with glue.

• A control cord is pulled between the arranged corners, which will allow you to control the evenness of further masonry.
• The ends of the blocks are connected by applying glue to the butt (side) of the block.
• When laying bricks, you should ensure that the locks of each block meet the locks of the upper bricks. You can adjust the blocks to each other with a mallet.
• Professionals recommend immediately laying out the entire outline of the building in one row.

Wall forcing

To make walls made of Lego blocks smooth, you must adhere to the following masonry technology:

• The bricks are laid in rows using an adhesive compound. This, in turn, is applied to the block bed and to the poke with a 10-15 mm roller. It is important that the glue goes around all the locking joints.
• The joining of brick locks is carried out with some pressure. That is, each top brick is placed in a bandage and a little pressure is applied to it so that the locks are connected according to the Lego principle. You can slightly adjust the brick with a mallet.
• The completely laid out row is controlled horizontally building level. If necessary, protruding blocks are pressed down with a mallet. A similar manipulation is carried out in the corners of the house and all walls in increments of 2 m. Control alignment of the row is carried out using the rule.

Important: if for some reason the height of the blocks cannot be adjusted with a mallet, then you can use special wedges that are installed in the right places and removed after the glue has hardened.

Wall reinforcement

Lego bricks require reinforcement during monolithic construction. If the house is small, then the fittings are installed in the key grooves only in the corners. After installing the rods, the vertical voids are filled concrete mortar. Reinforcement in this way is carried out every 6 rows.

If the house is large, then in addition to the corners, you need to reinforce the central parts of the walls in the same way. Additionally, horizontal rows of brick are also reinforced every 4-5 rows of masonry. To do this, grooves are made in the laid row, into which steel rods are laid. The grooves are filled with concrete mortar.

The last row of bricks must also be reinforced, that is, an armored belt is installed. To do this, use Legos as the last row special blocks with longitudinal grooves in them. The reinforcement is placed here and securely filled with concrete mortar.

Important: to prevent the poured solution from falling into vertical voids, it is necessary to install wooden plugs in them before laying the reinforcement.

Laying Lego blocks in door and window openings

When installing brick walls, you will definitely have to deal with the installation of ceilings in door and window openings. This is not difficult to do if you follow the technology.

• So, first of all, in the area of ​​​​the proposed opening (above it), removable wooden formwork is first installed and securely fastened.
• A series of Lego bricks are placed in the formwork and curtains are made in them for laying the reinforcement.
• Reinforcement is installed in the furrows and the next row of blocks is laid. The rods are again placed in the furrows.
• 4-5 rows are laid in a similar way, after which the vertical voids of the locks are filled with ready-made concrete mortar. The masonry is left until completely dry, after which the formwork is removed. As a result, the wall above the ceiling is monolithic structure made of brick and reinforced concrete.
• Further, the construction of the wall continues according to the old scheme.

In order for the laying of Lego blocks to proceed competently and efficiently, professionals recommend adhering to some recommendations:

• Masonry blocks must be extremely clean;
• You need to purchase Lego bricks for construction only from a trusted manufacturer who can provide quality certificates for the products;
• Laying Lego bricks dry (as the manufacturer allows) is still not recommended. Since in this case the tightness of the wall will be questionable, which means that the building will be blown through.

Carrying out such simple tips and adherence to masonry technology will allow you to get a beautiful and safe home from Lego blocks.

We made children's Lego construction sets and Lego building bricks - these are truly “close relatives.” But light-hearted discussions on the topic of how to quickly and easily put together this material, not a toy, but quite a real home, are inappropriate. After all, we are talking about serious things, which means we need answers to important questions: what are the properties of such a brick, how to work with it, how good and reliable will a building made from it be?

Unlike ceramic bricks, Lego bricks are made using the hyperpressing method. The mixture contains filler in a volume of 80-90% (clay, clay-sand mixture, sand in combination with fine screening of crushed stone or shell rock, limestone grains), cement binder (8-15%), water, as well as plasticizing additives and pigments . For the construction of capital walls and partitions, solid products with a strength of at least M150 are used. In comparison with ceramic bricks of the same brand, the material has a density comparable to it (1550 kg/m³ versus 1600-1900 kg/m³ for “ceramics”), a similar frost resistance indicator (35-40 cycles; with the help of additives, their number is increased to 200) and almost the same weight - from 3.2 to 4 kg. But at the same time it has much lower water absorption - not 14%, but only 5.5-6%, which makes it more resistant to atmospheric influences and significantly extends service life. The thermal conductivity coefficient of Lego brick is 0.4-0.56 W/m‧K, ordinary red brick is 0.5-0.8 W/m‧K, that is, the former holds heat better.

Lego brick size

The standard size of products is 250 (240) × 125 (120) × 65 mm. In addition to single bars, one-and-a-half and double bars are also produced. Characteristic feature, which, in fact, turns a simple brick into “Lego” is the presence of a system for pairing elements based on grooves and protrusions. Both may have different shapes, but the most practiced option is two centered holes Ø 65 mm: on the upper side of the block around them there are raised sides by 5 mm, and during installation the brick of the next row is, as it were, pushed onto these “rings”, lying perfectly flat and making it impossible to move the masonry . ( For your information: According to the type of parts from the Lego constructor, not only pressed bricks are made, but also building blocks made of polystyrene concrete, gas and foam concrete.) Mounting holes perform another important function- the channels they form in the walls serve for hidden gasket communications.

Due to the low water absorption of Lego bricks, facades made from it do not become covered with dark water stains, do not absorb dirt and do not lose their original appearance over time

Lego brick production, prices

Lego bricks are available in various modifications

When producing Lego bricks, manufacturers are guided by the requirements of GOST 7025-91 “Ceramic and silicate bricks and stones” and GOST 6133-99 “Concrete wall stones”. The fillers are crushed and combined with other components of the mass into the required proportion, after which the mixture is placed in special matrices and pressed. No firing required. The finished forms are sent for 72-hour curing until they reach full strength. This technology allows you to provide the material with the calculated density and obtain output products with perfectly accurate geometry, which determines correct docking bricks without any adjustment and guaranteed evenness and stability of the masonry. In addition to the usual smooth ones, they also produce bars with a textured front surface (in particular, under a natural stone), and thanks to pigments they can be given different colors, even spotted. And the composition of the mixture itself affects the color of the products: for example, the addition of ash makes them gray, while kaolin and limestone “lighten” them.

Like traditional bricks, “Lego” can be solid or hollow (up to 60% “air”). Naturally, such a material is cheaper to produce, has less weight, but also a smaller margin of safety, but has high heat-insulating abilities. It is perfect for cladding external walls and fireplaces, laying non-load-bearing partitions, for constructing gazebos, fences, etc.

Handmade

Machine for the production of Lego bricks with two dies

Companies producing construction equipment, offer manual and electrical machines For custom made Lego bricks. At the same time, to obtain products suitable for construction permanent buildings(that is, the appropriate grade of strength), it is necessary that the press provides a pressure of at least 30 tons.

Small mechanical units with one matrix are capable of producing up to 500-800 bricks per shift and cost about 60 thousand rubles; The productivity of semi-automatic lines is up to 2000 pieces, the price is from 200 thousand rubles. But automated complexes equipped with a full range of functions (dosing ingredients, grinding filler, kneading the mass, molding, pressing and steaming products) allow the production of up to 10 thousand bricks per shift and cost about 7-8 million rubles. And here the question of profitability comes to the fore. It is clear that the use of powerful, expensive machines is justified only if the process is put on a commercial footing.

Due to the emergence of semi-handicraft “garage production”, for which GOSTs and SNiPs are not a decree, when purchasing material you should be careful and require the presentation of quality and safety certificates for raw materials and final products, as well as their technical test reports. Reputable enterprises that guarantee that their products comply with all declared characteristics always have such documentation in stock.

The price of Lego bricks depends on many factors - the brand of material, the type of filler, the shape of the joining lock, the size and color of the product, the volume of the batch, as well as the region and even the season of purchase. On average, standard bars with strength M150-200 with two mounting holes cost from 16 to 20 rubles/piece. for samples of neutral gray and from 20 to 38 rubles/piece. for colored ones (red, beige, yellow, blue, black). The cost of models with an original marbled finish can reach up to 45-57 rubles. for a unit.

Subjected to hyper-pressing with a force of more than 30 tons, Lego brick acquires high strength, wear resistance, and crack resistance, which the firing technology cannot provide.

Advantages of use and masonry features

In addition to high technical and aesthetic characteristics, Lego brick has other advantages that directly relate to its installation.

First of all, such bars significantly simplify the laying process. Only the first row of bricks requires careful adjustment and constant level monitoring. Due to the rigid mating system and precise geometry, in subsequent rows the elements will fall strictly in place, forming an absolutely smooth structure, which does not allow any distortions or “blockages” along the axes. The result is a reduction in time masonry work, no need to hire highly qualified, and therefore highly paid, masons (their services will only be required at the initial stage of construction and during the construction of particularly critical sections of masonry, since it is ideal to bring the wall crookedly on top due first series is impossible, even if you try) and naturally follows from here saving money.

A house built from Lego bricks does not require plastering of the facade

Since Lego bricks are placed on special glue (moisture- and frost-resistant compounds for facade works), there is no need for preparation cement mortar and all the difficulties associated with its use: first of all, strict maintenance of the layer thickness. At the same time, the glue consumption is relatively small (a 25 kg package is enough to lay 500 bricks, which is half the price than using regular construction mixture), and the seams filled subsequently tile grout, turn out to be minimal. Thus, the elements acquire double fixation - locking and adhesive (this increases the strength of Lego masonry by more than 1.5 times compared to traditional ones), but most importantly, there are no cold bridges in the wall structure, which significantly improves its heat-shielding properties.

The walls, made of Lego bricks, have smooth surfaces, and consequently, do not need plastering, which is another savings item.

The presence of voids in walls made of Lego bricks should be taken into account when attaching heavy hanging objects to them, such as heating radiators. If you foresee their location in advance, the problem can be solved using embedded parts in the masonry

Layout of Lego brick walls

The masonry is carried out with through vertical and horizontal reinforcement. The first is realized through metal or basalt-plastic rods installed as stiffeners at the corners of the building, at the junction of walls, at the edges of openings, etc. The bricks are simply strung on them, making a mandatory ligation.

For horizontal gain The masonry is served by reinforced belts, which are cast after concreting the vertical reinforcement. They are performed on bars with a formwork profile through the designed number of rows. Free channels formed by mounting holes can also be filled with concrete before installing reinforced belts for additional strengthening of the structure.

If according to thermal engineering calculation the enclosing walls are laid out in two layers, the space between them is filled with a heat insulator, such as expanded clay or stone wool.

Due to the relative novelty of the technology, there are not yet many examples of permanent houses made of Lego bricks. But the characteristics of the material declared by reputable manufacturers give every reason to believe that in terms of reliability and durability, such buildings are at least not inferior to traditional stone buildings