Bricklayer
How to choose the perfect bricklayer for your home.
There is just about no more important fundamental jobs when it comes to the building of your home. They are literally laying the foundation and building blocks that almost every other job will count on the integrity of the bricklayer to do their own work.
A job this important means that you have to be even more certain that you’re choosing the best bricklayer to do the brick work needed for your home. We spoke with many tradesmen that are highly recommended here on ClickATrades, to learn what things you need to know so you can choose the perfect bricklayer for your home:
- Experience matters even more than accreditations.
- Ask the right questions about how they’re going to do their job
- Get multiple quotes and ensure they are thorough.
- Learn the aftercare plan for your home’s brickwork.
Starting with keeping these things in mind will allow you to be certain that you’re hiring the most qualified bricklayer for the brickwork needed for your home. Let’s look at these in a little more detail.
Experience matters even more than accreditations.
We’ve all imagined someone building our home, whether it’s putting up the framing for the walls, or someone laying the bricks, brick by brick, that become the sturdy walls of our dream home. No matter what you’ve imagined, know that brickwork is a truly specialized trade. When it comes to the tradesman you hire to do any brickwork on your home, ensure that you’re hiring a specialist.
You’ll want to take time to review their previous work and if it matches up to the brickwork needs you have for your home’s construction. It’s important also to review and check with their references. For instance, you can find a complete list of references as well as honest feedback from their previous clients here on ClickATrades website.
When it comes to the accreditations you will want to be sure that they have to do the brickwork on your home, these are some of them:
- Federation of Master Builders: This is the UK’s largest trade association for the construction industry. All members have to undergo inspection by the body and uphold a certain standard of work.
- Guild of Builders and Contractors: If they’re a “Trusted Member” of this association it means that they have over three years of trading with customer and financial referees.
- Guild of Master Craftsmen: This association will ensure that their work is upheld to a high standard.
- National Federation of Builders: This association requires all members have public liability insurance and adhere to a strict code of conduct.
- FairTrades Association: If the bricklayer you’re looking at is a member of this association this is a good indication that they are competent and their work is done in a high standard and quality.
Ask the right questions about the work they’re going to do on your home.
It’s important to gather as much information as possible from any potential bricklayer who’s going to do work on your home. The more information you have when you go into it, the more you’re able to know they’re holding up their standards of quality within the work. Sometimes you’ll end up hiring a bricklayer who’s work looks great from the outside but will not hold up under the test of pressure and time.
Ask them about the techniques that they’re going to use? What is their approach to the work going to be? Do they sound like they may have a tendency to cut corners to finish the work faster? Ask to physically see some of their previous brickwork.
These are some of the best types of questions to ask of any bricklayer you’re considering.
Get multiple quotes and compare them
You never want to hire the first person you meet with. Always take the time to have multiple, we recommend at least three, bricklayers come out to your home or job site to give you a proper and thorough quote on the work needed. Be sure that each quote is as detailed as possible. Do they have materials and labour included? If there’s a demo needed, is the disposal of all the old materials included in their quote?
Are they going to follow up? What is the plan?
Before hiring any bricklayer for the work needed on your home, ensure that they’re going to be following up on the work done. As with any job in construction, there is always a possibility that something will go wrong or a complication will come up. And in many cases, these don’t happen until after the entire job is done and you’re living in the home.
Ensure that any bricklayer you hire will come out after the job is completed and house lived in to inspect their work and follow up for any potential risks, etc.
These are just a few of the things to look for when hiring a bricklayer for your home, and they are important ones to know going into your search.