MASONRY AND SUSTAINABILITY
FEB 28th
MASONRY AND SUSTAINABILITY
By: Austin Harril
Masonry is an ancient building technique, thousands of years old and still among the most widely used approaches to construction worldwide. This long and illustrious history has allowed the craft of masonry to evolve such that, though ancient, masonry is anything but obsolete. In today’s age, ecological stewardship is among the first priorities for building construction and renovation, so consider the advantages masonry provides to the sustainability of your project:
Long Lasting Carbon Investment
Every building material requires an investment in carbon. Carbon costs are incurred when extracting, processing, shipping, and using a material; but also throughout it’s useful life. Some materials have higher front-end carbon costs, but lower ongoing ones. Balancing these considerations is central to realizing the sustainability of your construction project.
While the front-end carbon cost of masonry is comparatively higher than some other materials, few materials can provide better access to the benefit of low ongoing carbon production. Buildings and interior fixtures made of comparable materials like steel or wood will have a lower front-end carbon cost, they cannot match the unique balance of longevity and thermal efficiency masonry provides.
Unique Longevity and Thermal Efficiency.
While the initial carbon cost of masonry is generally higher than alternative materials, few can compete with the unique combination of longevity and thermal efficiency provided by masonry construction.
When it comes to building structures, or structural components, the higher initial investment of carbon is offset over time by increased thermal efficiency. Well suited to maintaining the difference in temperature between the outside and inside of a building, masonry substantially reduces the energy (and therefore carbon) costs of a building.
If you aren’t building a structure, but rather a fixture within your home, the primary benefit of masonry is its ability to outlast nearly any other material common household material. Where cellulose-rich materials like wood, drywall, etc. will last for decades until eventually succumbing to decay; properly designed and constructed masonry fixtures will last centuries! While it takes them time to ‘return’ their carbon investment, the fact that they have so much more time available makes them a competitive choice of material for the environmentally conscious.
Maximize the Sustainability of Masonry Construction with Integrity Masonry
When it comes to considering masonry for your environmentally-friendly construction or renovation, there are thousands of materials and methods that can be combined to deliver maximum sustainability for the unique circumstances of your build. If you’d like to learn more about the opportunities masonry can provide to maximize the sustainability of your project, get in touch with Integrity Masonry!
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