In article ,
Simon Avery wrote:
Jane Lumley wrote:

JL Thing is, said acre is currently rather exposed to wind and
JL traffic noise, so dh and I are eager to make a walled garden
JL by building brick walls around at least part of it. Are we
JL mad? I've looked at several websites and the art of
JL bricklaying seems very jargon laden. Does anyone know of a
JL site in plain English? And has anyone ever done one
JL of those night-school bricklaying courses?

uk.d-i-y is the "better place" for this kind of thing, but the reason
it seems complicated is because it can be - especially if you plan on
building walls above a certain height; they need buttressing and
reinforcement at specific places to make sure they don't fall over and
squash someone.

No, it's not complicated - that's not the same as needing to be got
right. I am thinking of doing the same, though I would probably
get someone to do the building (lack of time). But I have designed
it myself - you don't need advanced mathematics. The reference
pamphlet is "design of Free Standing Walls" by J.O.A. Korff,
published by the Brick Development Association. It covers all you
need to know.

If you are doing anything unusual or pushing the limits, such as I
plan to, it is probably worth paying a bit to get it vetted by an
architect. You may also find it a lot cheaper to get a builder
to do it than you think if you are prepared to schedule the time
according to their convenience. But you MUST contract a finishing
date, or it will never be finished!


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.