Most buildings have essential components to them that even laymen can point to. These include the flooring, roofing, the walls, and of course, the doors and windows! Doors and windows are special structures in buildings in that they provide openings in the structure.
If you’re a bit familiar with the art of masonry, you’ll know balance is important for a structurally sound building. Lintels are a very important part of residential or commercial building construction and are majorly responsible for providing support to openings in the structure, although in some instances they can be used for visual purposes as well.
Let’s take a look at what lintels are all about more closely!
What is a Lintel Exactly?
Like we mentioned earlier, proper balance and weight support is crucial for any building in order to maintain its stability. An opening in a wall in the form of a door or window creates disproportion, but this is where lintels come in!
Lintels are beam-like components that go directly above a door or window frame and stretch across two walls. This set-up allows for lintels to transfer weight that presses down from above to walls on the sides, thus maintaining equilibrium and preventing higher areas of the building from cracking or caving in on themselves and falling into door and window areas.
What Are the Types of Lintel?
The most common factor determining how lintels are categorized is the kind of material the beams are made out of.
Wood
You’ll find that most historical buildings used wood lintels. Wood or timber lintels are still used in regions where the material is available in abundance.
Stone
Stone lintel beams are still more commonplace in comparison to wood in the present time, even more so in areas where stone is available in abundance. However since stone can be very heavy, stone lintels are sometimes limited to stone masonry structures.
Brick
Brick lintels can be quite delicate and so are limited to openings that aren’t too big. Brick, unless with frogs or ‘depressions’ that give it added support, isn’t built to withstand heavy weight.
Steel
In combination with concrete, steel is able to take on heavy loads and provides greater support to surrounding structures. This is why you will frequently find steel lintels being used for larger door and window openings.
Do Lintels Need Maintenance?
The straightforward answer is yes. Depending on the material, lintel beams have a varying degree of durability. Rusting, rotting, water damage, mortar cracking, and pitting are some of the lintel problems you can expect to encounter overtime.
At AMN Masonry, we provide exemplary stone lintel repair and replacement services in the Greater Boston area. On a whole, our services fall into the commercial & historical construction restoration niches. The AMN Masonry crew has been operating in the industry for over 13 years! Contact us now to schedule a lintel inspection, repair or replacement for your building.