ᐅ Brick vs. Brick with External Thermal Insulation Composite System (ETICS)

Hello, I have a question for you,

In your opinion, what is better: a house with an external wall insulation system of 18 cm (7 inches) added on, or using higher-quality bricks instead?

Thank you for your answers

Hello,
there isn’t really a better or worse option, just a different one.

An 18cm (7 inch) external wall insulation system (EWIS) on a brick wall will provide thermal insulation that a solid brick wall of the same total thickness can hardly match. The T8 bricks have such thin webs that you might run into issues with structural stability, sound insulation, and mounting kitchen cabinets. On the other hand, “you simply don’t have plastic on the outside of the wall.”

You need to consider what is important to you; in the end, it also comes down to cost. The higher quality bricks are quite expensive.

Personally, I didn’t want to pay an extra 6,000 to 8,000 euros to end up with worse thermal insulation.

Best regards,

Andreas

In my opinion, every interface between materials and trades carries some risk. Therefore, I would recommend using 49mm T8 (about 2 inches T8), although there is a lot of personal preference involved. Sound insulation, thermal storage capacity, and structural stability should definitely not be an issue with this.

Monolithic bricks without insulation have significant vertical thermal bridges from the start. Bricks with insulation can later develop the problem of the insulation settling, causing direct thermal bridges from the inside to the outside. This is not an unfounded opinion; in my view, the issue of perlite insulation settling is well known.

If building monolithically, I would actually prefer autoclaved aerated concrete. Thermal bridges are less of a problem there, and interior insulation cannot settle.

Using bricks with an external thermal insulation composite system (ETICS) – or calcium silicate blocks with ETICS – provides better insulation values, has truly load-bearing walls that can be drilled into, and allows you to attach fixtures without using special anchors that would otherwise damage the insulation by drilling through thin sections.

Polystyrene foam is a good base for plaster. There is a large prefabricated house company that applies a thin layer of polystyrene foam on the exterior simply because it is an excellent plaster carrier. Also, there are fewer thermal bridges since the insulation is uniform on the outside. This is, for example, an important consideration for floor ceiling assemblies.

There are pros and cons on both sides... you can work it out yourself... (material costs, labor effort,...)