Brick Barbeque Veneer

Swipe to view slides

This lovely outdoor kitchen features a used brick look with thin veneer. It is vital to select such cladding with care because many thin brick finishes will easily become dated as with those of the first wave of artificial veneers of the 1970s.
The clean lines and darker red brick along with an overhead painted out white is a timeless choice for a large family backyard.
Many designers are using hand made brick to bring an antique look to their projects. These offer a slightly irregular appearance compared to the mass produced extruded brick. Though hand made is much more expensive, smaller applications such as this can be surprisingly affordable.
This prairie style home features elements strongly Asian in character, so here the light colored brick with its accent band was selected to match the veneer on the house facade.

If you're looking for a barbeque veneer that's durable and has timeless appeal, brick is a great option. A brick veneer is a good way to get a quality finish without having to construct the entire base of your kitchen out of brick. Brick laying is labor-intensive and requires professional masonry skills; however, a brick veneer is much simpler.

Brick remains a popular material in certain regions where it is already well established in the architectural vernacular. It is almost always used in projects where brick is pre-existing and should logically be extended into the outdoor kitchen or barbecue center. The wide range of clay colors as well as certain finishes such as manufactured "used" brick is driving some fresh new applications as the industry provides newer options.

In some regions such as the Northwest, red brick is all but dead and only the dark, clinker types of brick are ever seen. In the deep South, red brick is a standard that is also popular as far north as Washington DC and into parts of New England.

A brick veneer can be applied to a wood or steel frame, or a concrete block structure. For wood or steel framed bases, cement backer board will need to be installed before adding a brick veneer, this is not necessary for concrete block. Backer board provides a solid moisture and heat barrier on which to attach the brick veneer.

There are two types of brick veneer: full-brick and thin-brick. A full-brick veneer consists of whole bricks mortared together up the face of the structure. This type of veneer should not be applied directly to the structure; a gap of at least one inch is need for ventilation. Additionally, corrugated metal ties should be used intermittently for extra support. A thin-brick veneer consists of ½ inch thick bricks attached directly to the concrete block or backer board using mortar. Be sure that the brick veneer you select is not too heavy for the backer board. Check with your contractor or veneer supplier to see if reinforcement is need.

Resources:
Cultured Stone offers an beautiful used brick veneer
Eldorado Stone offers manufactured brick veneer
Brick-It offers brick veneer panel systems in a variety of colors
Arto Brick Company offers brick veneers in a many styles, including adobe brick
GenStone offers artificial brick siding with a vintage appearance

Related Reading: