Three window bays of the Cedar Rapids office building in 2019, cream brick above a dark grey brown base course with yews planted along the foot of the wall
Case File 047

Darkening Light Brick on a Cedar Rapids Office Building

The brick on this single-story building went up too light and with too wide a range. The manufacturer who made the brick paid to have the light units darkened in 1995 rather than replaced. It was photographed again twenty-four years later and certified Platinum.

Case No. 047
Structure Single-story office building
Location Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Stained 1995
Re-photographed 2019
Elapsed 24 years, Platinum level

1995

  1. Three window bays in 1995, cream brick above a tan base course, bare dirt at the foot of the wall and a stack of sample brick leaning against it Before, 1995 View this photo larger
  2. A corner of the building in 1995, tan base brick under cream brick and tinted windows, a pier at the right and bare ground in front Before, 1995 View this photo larger
  3. An applicator crouched on a yellow step stool working stain into the tan base course beside a conduit in 1995, the photographer reflected in the window above During, 1995 View this photo larger
  4. The test area in 1995, a darkened strip of base brick running down from a window sill, with a sample panel leaning against the wall at the right During, 1995 View this photo larger

What was wrong

In the file's words, the brick were too light and had too much of a range. Nothing had failed. The brick manufacturer hired the correction, not the owner. The file also records these as some of the hardest clay brick ever made, with low absorbency, which it calls not ideal for staining.

What was done

The architect brought over a sample to match. A test area went on the base course beside the untouched brick, and once it was approved the light brick was darkened for a better blend. Mineral stain, brushed on by hand, absorbed into the brick rather than sitting on it.

2019, twenty-four years on

  1. Three window bays of the Cedar Rapids office building in 2019, cream brick above a dark grey brown base course with yews planted along the foot of the wall After, 2019 View this photo larger
  2. The long elevation of the building from the parking lot in 2019, cream brick over a dark base under a band of siding, a tenant sign at the right and a yellow curb line in front After, 2019 View this photo larger
  3. A corner of the building in 2019, the base course dark grey brown under cream brick and tinted windows, with yews and hostas planted in front After, 2019 View this photo larger
  4. A single window bay in 2019, cream brick over the dark base course with one yew in front and a man in a red shirt reflected in the glass After, 2019 View this photo larger
  5. A window bay and pier in 2019, the base course one dark range under the cream brick, with yews along the sidewalk After, 2019 View this photo larger

What twenty-four years prove

Same window bays, same base course, one range along the wall. On the certification scale that is Platinum, which covers twenty years and over. As of 2026 the work is thirty-one years old, and the 2019 photographs are the most recent record on it.

The signed file

Every certified job gets the same form, filled in and signed after someone has gone back to the building. This is the one for case 047, transcribed beside the scan so it can be read on a phone and by a search engine.

The case study form for case 047, filled in and signed View the signed form full size
Project name
Building, Cedar Rapids, IA (1995)
Level
Platinum. The scale runs Bronze at seven years and over, Silver at ten and over, Gold at fifteen and over, Platinum at twenty and over.
Hired by
The brick manufacturer
Cause
Complaint or problem
Background
"Brick were too light and had too much of a range"
Actions taken
"Darkened the light brick for a better blend"
Detail of events
"This was some of the hardest clay brick ever made, meaning it also had low absorbency. This isn't ideal for staining but we made it work and it's held up beautifully"
Address
Release permission required
Authorized
Donald A. Foster, signed, dated 2020
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