Clay Brick Paver Specification and Selection Guide
Specify clay brick pavers by application, format, thickness, surface, slip testing, strength, absorption, exposure, bedding, joints and samples.
Historical archive: product availability, standards and event information may have changed. Contact LOPO for current specifications.A clay brick paver specification should connect the selected unit to traffic, exposure, drainage, substrate, bedding, joints, edge restraint, surface testing, dimensional tolerances, and installation. A paver that is appropriate for a private pedestrian terrace is not automatically suitable for a public square, vehicle route, freeze-thaw climate, pool edge, or chemically exposed service area. Define the application first, then request current product evidence and approve representative samples.
Confirm the Product Boundary
Clay pavers, thin brick slips, facade bricks, floor tiles, and stair units can share a fired-clay appearance but have different geometries, backs, thicknesses, edges, and intended assemblies. Start with the LOPO clay paver overview and request the current drawing for the selected item. Do not transfer data from a wall product or another thickness.
State whether units will be installed in a flexible sand-set pavement, a rigid mortar or adhesive system, on pedestals, or by another engineered method. The supplier’s paver data does not design the base, slab, waterproofing, drainage, or movement strategy.
Build the Selection Brief Around Use and Exposure
| Input | Question to answer | Resulting requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Traffic | Pedestrians, bicycles, maintenance carts, cars, service vehicles, or concentrated loads? | Assembly design and relevant load or strength evidence |
| Wetness | Dry interior, rain-exposed, entrance, pool-adjacent, irrigated, or frequently washed? | Slip-test route, drainage, falls, and cleaning plan |
| Climate | Freeze-thaw cycles, salts, heat, large temperature swings, or coastal exposure? | Project-specific product and assembly verification |
| Substrate | Compacted base, concrete slab, waterproofed deck, stairs, or another build-up? | Bedding, joints, movement, edge restraint, and moisture details |
| Appearance | Module, bond, colour range, texture, edges, cuts, and adjacent materials? | Coded sample range, layout drawing, and mock-up |
Specify Dimensions and Tolerances
Record actual length, width, thickness, edge shape, chamfer, surface direction, and relevant dimensional tolerances. Coordinate them with the paving grid, joint width, falls, thresholds, drains, covers, steps, walls, curbs, and movement joints. Nominal dimensions alone do not establish the finished module.
Thickness selection depends on the product geometry, traffic, support, bedding, and design method. Avoid copying a standard thickness list into the contract without checking the proposed unit and pavement build-up. Include cut-piece limits, edge treatment, special shapes, and transitions to other materials.
Map Each Performance Claim to Evidence
- Strength or breaking load: identify the governing test, specimen geometry, loading arrangement, conditioning, result, and design use.
- Abrasion or wear: state the method and classification required for the intended traffic; grades from another standard are not interchangeable.
- Water absorption: request the value and method for the selected product, then relate it to exposure rather than using a universal limit.
- Freeze-thaw: define climate, salts, saturation, test method, cycles, observations, and acceptance criteria required by the project.
- Slip resistance: name the wet or dry condition, direction, test method, surface, criterion, and maintenance assumptions.
- Chemical exposure: identify the actual contaminant, concentration, duration, cleaning response, joint materials, and project test if relevant.
Do not use unsourced claims such as “stronger than stone,” “fadeless,” “one-hundred-year life,” or a fixed absorption, wear, or freeze-thaw value. Evidence must represent the ordered item and applicable standard.
Approve Colour, Texture, and Pattern as a Range
Fired clay can show tonal and dimensional variation. Approve several identified pieces that represent acceptable light, middle, and dark limits, surface texture, edges, and excluded defects. Review the set under relevant light and next to jointing and adjacent materials.
Lay out a representative mock-up with the intended bond, joint width and colour, cuts, borders, falls, drains, edge restraint, and cleaning method. If directional texture or mixed colours are used, document rotation and blending rules for installers.
Coordinate the Pavement Build-Up
The responsible designer should define excavation or slab preparation, base and subbase, compaction, falls, drainage, waterproofing where used, bedding, adhesive or mortar compatibility, jointing, movement accommodation, edge restraint, curing, and protection. Water should not be trapped below units or directed into vulnerable adjacent construction.
Flexible and rigid systems behave differently. Do not combine details from both without a specific design. Exterior thresholds, accessible routes, utility covers, tree pits, stairs, and interfaces with asphalt, concrete, stone, or metal need enlarged details.
Use Production and Delivery Controls
- Release one controlled schedule naming product code, dimensions, thickness, finish, quantity, evidence, and samples.
- Agree batch identification, colour blending, dimensional and visual criteria, inspection timing, and nonconformance decisions.
- Define packing, pallet or crate labels, delivery sequence, unloading, storage, protection, wastage, and spare units.
- Inspect identity, quantity, dimensions, surface range, edges, damage, contamination, and documents before installation.
- Build and approve the site mock-up before general laying, then retain it as a workmanship reference.
- Record accepted changes, repairs, replacement stock, cleaning guidance, and as-built product locations.
The terracotta tile inspection checklist supports delivery and pre-installation review. Current item exploration is available through the architectural terracotta item listing, while manufacturing questions can be routed through the LOPO factory overview.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there one clay paver thickness for every application?
No. Product geometry, traffic, support, bedding, design method, exposure, and local requirements affect selection. Confirm the proposed item and assembly.
Are clay pavers automatically slip resistant?
No. Specify a relevant test method, condition, direction, surface, criterion, and maintenance regime, then review current representative evidence.
Does low water absorption prove freeze-thaw suitability?
Not by itself. Use the project’s exposure classification and required test method, including conditioning, salts where relevant, observations, and acceptance criteria.
Can pavers be approved from one colour sample?
One piece cannot show distribution. Approve an identified range and a multi-unit mock-up with the intended joint, bond, cuts, borders, and adjacent materials.
Request a Paver Specification Review
Send the application, traffic, exposure, pavement build-up, dimensions, thickness, finish, bond, joints, standards, testing, sample and mock-up scope, quantity, programme, and destination through the LOPO project enquiry page. Current product evidence should be reviewed with the responsible pavement designer.
