Improvements in the Facing and Enamelling of Bricks and other Structural or Ornamental Pieces for Building and other Architectural Purposes.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 21st May, 1894
Complete Specification Left, 21st Mar., 1895-Accepted, 21st May, 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Facing and Enamelling of Bricks and
other Structural or Ornamental Pieces for Building and
other Architectural Purposes.
JAMES PARR Cycle Manufacturer 61, 63 and 65 Friar Lane ROBERT MABSTON
Dental Surgeon, Vectis Villas Wigston Road and ARTHUR CARR Builder
145 Berners Street all of Leicester in the County of Leicester do hereby declare
the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Improvements in the facing and enamelling of bricks and other structural or
ornamental pieces for building and other architectural purposes.
The term "enameled-brick" is a technical term which in the building trade is
everywhere understood as distinctly meaning a fire-brick whose surface is covered
with a suitable colour and glaze and is thereby rendered impervious to moisture and
noxious gases and whose surface is capable of being effectually cleansed from
adherent dirt by ordinary methods of washing or scouring. "Enameled-brick
always and everywhere conveys that meaning because of the universal practice of
enamelling firebrick only.
"
All other kinds of brick have been beretofore regarded as not sufficiently
refractory in all the known methods of enamelling.
This universal practice of enamelling firebrick only is consequent on the process
having at first been an accidental occurrence not based upon a scientific foundation,
hence those chemical or causative principles whose operation culminates in the effect
aimed at, not being sufficiently understood the issue presumably proceeded more
from the corrective influence of chemical laws than from the skilful conduction of
chemical operations, hence presumably arose those imaginary exaggerated differences
of the co-efficient of expansion of different glazes and clays which have created
insurmountable barriers to the progress of many who have endeavoured to produce
even an ordinary enameled-firebrick while the fortunate few who have succeeded
remember too well the cost of their success to dare any attempt at enlarging the
sphere of their knowledge to that extent which is necessary to bring their sanitary
and ornamental commodity within humble dwellings or within the reach of poorer
persons than those whose means are at least sufficient to justify a more or less
indulgence in luxurious usefulness and embellishment therefore up to the present
enameled-bricks have remained a luxury more than a general commodity
notwithstanding their sanitary importance.
The aim of our invention is to apply the processes of facing and glazing with under-
glaze colours, over glaze colours, opaque and transparent coloured enamels and
transparent glazes, to white-bricks other than fire bricks and to every kind of red
brick and all other structural and ornamental pieces made from those materials.
We have discovered that by using low fusion glazes enamels and clays we can
thus extend this manufacture and produce all the architectural and sanitary:
requirements of this class,
We do not herein claim an exclusive right to the production or use of any
particular colour, enamel, or glaze or any particular method of applying the same
but we do claim the sole and exclusive right to apply underglaze and overglaze
colours transparent and opaque coloured enamels and transparent glazes to white
bricks other than firebrick and to every kind of red-brick and all other structural
and ornamental pieces made from those materials at any stage of their manufacture

page_text: or upon the previously baked articles on the ground that this extended application
is novel and highly beneficial to the general public for useful ornamental and
sanitary purposes.
JAMES PARR.
ROBERT MARSTON.
ARTHUR CARR.
Improvements in the Facing and Enamelling of Bricks and
other Structural or Ornamental Pieces for "Building and
other Architectural Purposes.
-
JAMES PARR 61, 63 and 65 Friar Lane Cycle Manufacturer, ROBERT MARSTON
Vectis Villas, Wigston Road, Dental Surgeon, ARTHUR CARR, Builder,
145 Berner's Street all of Leicester in the County of Leicester do hereby
declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:-
Our invention comprises the facing and glazing separate or combined of all
pressed and unpressed bricks and all other structural and ornamental pieces made
from any of those natural earths, or their manufactured combinations technically
called common red clay as well as from their artificial equivalents used by the trade
for red or common bricks.
The trade names red brick and common brick are understood by builders
architects and others as distinctly excluding "fire bricks" "brindles" and "blue
bricks."
The term "firebrick " is every where understood as meaning a refractory brick
of a white or yellowish white colour. Its refractory quality is mainly owing to the
comparative absence of calcium, magnesium, iron, manganese, sodium, potassium,
and other fusible elements or their compounds. The whiteness of firebrick
approximates the natural colour of the combination of its chief constituents viz.
silica and alumina but the silicate is seldom if ever white owing, usually, to the
presence of a small percentage of iron. There are other bricks possessing the
whiteness of firebricks which owing to their percentage of lime and other native
fluxes cannot withstand the action of high temperatures and because of their
comparative fusibility the trade contra distinguishes them by the name "white-
bricks." We claim the sole right to face, enamel, and glaze white bricks, other
than "firebricks.""
Brindles are made from blue-clay or more properly speaking a clay known to
contain all the native essentials for producing a blue-brick when the operation of
firing is continued to its full limit. The "brindle" differs from a "blue-brick" in
colour and other qualities characteristic of an intermediate stage of firing.
Imitation brindles however may be obtained from clays that are incapable of
producing a genuine blue-brick. We claim the sole right to face, enamel, and
glaze, imitation brindles.
Blue bricks are blue throughout. They are made from clay whose natural
inherent disposition displayed during the operation of firing is the development of
that peculiar appearance from which the “blue-brick” derives its name; other blue-
bricks are obtainable from "red clay" by the process of "colouring" viz, staining
and also by a peculiar method of firing which is known to kiln-burners. These
bricks, however, are regarded by the trade as inferior imitations to which the
:

page_text: technical term "blue-brick" does not properly apply. We claim the sole right to
face, glaze, and enamel, imitation-blue-bricks.
Now be it distinctly understood that we do not claim the sole right of using any
particular formula or any limited number of formulas for producing the many
different coloured facings, enamels, and glazes we employ, nor do we claim any
particular method of applying the same, but whereas bricks aul other structural
and ornamental pieces for building and other architectural purposes made from the
aforesaid natural earths, their manufactured combinations, or their artificial
equivalents, have never,-to the best of our knowledge and belief-been heretofore
glazed faced, or enamelled, we claim the sole right to face enamel and glaze, with
underglaze colours overglaze colours, coloured, and uncoloured, transparent,
translucent, and opaque enamels, and glazes, applied by every method to the afore-
said articles viz. all articles implied and embraced by this the title of our invention
at any stage of their manufacture or upon the previously baked articles preparatory
to a subsequent firing of the goods so treated, namely by "dipping washing
brushing dusting" and "volatilizing."
66
66
" 66
29
Now be it known that "firebricks" and other "fireclay "goods likewise "brindles "
and other "blue-clay" goods have for some time been successfully faced and
glazed, their comparative high fusion range exerts a corrective influence upon all
unscientific formulas having a disproportion of those constituents which govern the
co-efficient of expansion and doubtless the difficulties experienced by those who
after a long series of experiments succeeded in producing an ordinary glazed "fire-
brick" would cause them to remember, too well, the cost of their accidental
achievement and prevent their being tempted to vary their formulas or alter their
mode of firing. This may explain in some measure why the imperviousness and
other improvements imparted to bricks of high fusion range have not been applied
to red bricks and low fusion clays whose exaction upon accuracy of chemical
formulation and manipulative skill increases with the decrease of their baking
temperature.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what we
claim is
1. The sole right to face, enamel, or glaze all white bricks other than "fire
bricks."
2. The sole right to face, enamel, and glaze, all imitation brindles.
3. The sole right to face enamel, or glaze, all imitation blue-bricks.
4. The sole right to face enamel and glaze all bricks made from red clay or its
low fusion equivalents capable of yielding common bricks.
5. The sole right to dip, wash, brush or dust the aforesaid facings, enamels, and
glazes, upon all the articles inclusive in the terms of this Specification and to cause
the same appearances by "volatilization," sometimes called "flashing."
Dated this Twentieth day of March A.D. 1895.
JAMES PARR.
ROBERT MARSTON.
ARTHUR CARR.