When purchasing or building a new home, prospective homeowners have to look deep into the various material building options at their disposal, suggests Alex from Malta Sotheby’s real estate agency. The two main materials for house construction are brick and weatherboard. Ultimately, the choice between the two is dependent on the homeowner decision, and also depends on other external factors such as the cost and general climate of the area.

Below is a breakdown of the pros and cons of using each of the above, which should guide a prospective homeowner on the best option for their circumstance.

Using Brick

Brick is a common trend in house construction in the modern times. This is mostly because of its perceived strength and general tolerance to the external factors such as climate. Below are the pros and cons of using brick as a construction material:

Pros

High durability. This durability comes hand in hand with the very low maintenance costs and activities. The only major maintenance brick walls require is the rare painting, which is not so expensive and can last long

Strong looking walls. It’s common sense that brick walls are strong and very difficult to break down.

Cost-effectiveness. Despite the possible higher costs of constructing a brick house, this is held down by the fact that the house is more durable, and will last years before any need for renovations.

Brick walls are always dry, and in the event of rain, the water is absorbed, leaving the house looking dry.

Due to the strength and sturdiness, it’s possible to build big buildings such as skyscrapers using brick.

Cons

Brick houses require very careful construction, involving professionals. This makes their cost rise as compared to houses made of other materials.

Brick walls can often be susceptible to damp problems if adequate drainage is not in place, leaks develop in places around or over the bricks or if a poor damp proof course has been applied. If this does happen it can be costly, this article by Damp Hero entitled “how to treat damp” goes into detail about what is involved.

Brick walls have poor insulation to external weather as compared to the weatherboards which have air trapped in between boards.

Major brick wall damages require more costly repairs as compared to the normal weatherboards

Construction of brick houses takes relatively long durations of time as compared to using weatherboards which take days.

Use of brick for construction is an environmentally friendly exercise, since bricks are all natural, giving it a ‘green’ appeal.

Using Weatherboards

Weatherboards are a material for house construction with two boards side by side forming a wall, with air trapped in between. It has its advantages over other materials, and also disadvantages, as discussed below.

There are different types of weatherboard cladding namely; Timber (pine, cedar, treated pine etc) fibre, vinyl (a relatively economical option), metal and corrugated steel.

Pros 

They have a lower initial cost of construction as compared to brick houses. This is because weatherboards are easily available, and for low costs. They can also be made using reclaimed wood, making it an environmentally friendly option.

Weatherboards offer good insulation in case of extreme weather conditions. This is because they have air trapped in between the boards, which regulate either heat or cold.

It’s easier to install or build a house using weatherboards, and construction takes relatively shorter durations. This is so because they don’t require professionals to do all the work, with a good plan anyone with basic carpentry knowledge can bring up a weatherboard home.

It is easy to carry out repairs on weatherboards, in the case of any. These repairs are often loose nailing, or a rare filling of a rotten piece of wood, whose repair take very short time

Weatherboards, unlike brick constructions, are more tolerant to earth movements such as slight earthquakes as compared to brick houses.

Cons

Very unfavorable for constructing complicated high-rise buildings such as skyscrapers, due to their lack of sturdiness.

Timber weatherboards surprisingly require a lot more maintenance over time as compared to brick houses, due to their lack of durability

Weatherboards are not noise proof, meaning the occupants of the house will still be affected by noises from outside such as hooting in traffic.

The lack of sturdiness makes weatherboards quite insecure since they can be easily brought down or broken into. Weatherboard houses are also more vulnerable to heavy storms.

Final thought

Using these pointers, and putting various factors into consideration, deciding between brick and weatherboards should be a step easier. Choose the one that meets your needs and conditions, but most importantly your style!