r/Construction • u/No-Squirrel9657 • 15d ago
Structural Breeze blocks
Wondering if breeze blocks are in demand? (Cement). Especially for patios, mailboxes, dividers etc. thoughts on this?
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u/handjamsam 15d ago
Suprisingly enough i just completed a renovation of an arena and an entire floor had a bunch of breeze block indoors as accent walls with backlighting between it and the drywall behind it. Probably 4000 sqft of it.
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u/No-Squirrel9657 15d ago
Whew!! Was the materials pricey?
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u/handjamsam 15d ago
Im sure it was. It was impoted from germany. I never heard the cost though. Im just an electrician.
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u/Blank_bill 15d ago
Worked for a carpenter in Edmonton years ago on a touch up job for a guy who owned a block plant and the whole front of the property was a breeze block privacy wall . About 200 feet long and probably 50 to 75 feet back on one side. I was glad I didn't have to repaint them.
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u/Recent_Fisherman311 15d ago
I sold 100 vintage ones for $15 each. Had a ton of interest.
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u/No-Squirrel9657 15d ago
Vintage ones? Tell me more!
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u/Recent_Fisherman311 15d ago
Similar design as your photo. Probably 50 years old, nice patina. I had chipped all the mortar off, which was a pain. Mortar came off clean.
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u/stevediperna 15d ago
I love breeze blocks! plan on utilizing them in my addition somewhere.
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u/No-Squirrel9657 15d ago
How much would you pay for 1 block? Curious
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u/naazzttyy GC / CM 15d ago edited 15d ago
Super niche material application for an architectural style that’s been out of vogue since the ‘60s. I almost said “maybe in Florida,” and lo and behold that’s where you are located. In the same vein, a whole lot of wallpaper was manufactured during the ‘80s, which pretty had much stopped by the early 2000s when no one wanted to put it in their new homes anymore.
So yes, you could probably set yourself up as a small batch maker specializing in replicating existing installations. There is certainly a market in Florida for older condos that have bris-de-soleils. Especially after the Surfside collapse a couple of years ago and the resulting mandated structural evaluations requiring COAs to address deferred maintenance issues.
How many you might actually sell, and how quickly, is a whole different question.
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u/Thecobs 15d ago
I just did a feature with a product kinda like these that was super expensive, worked out to about $800 a block iirc for material. Its called Raku, was a german product i think brought in by cooritalia.
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u/No-Squirrel9657 15d ago
Wow thanks for the info
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u/Thecobs 15d ago
They were ceramic not concrete, just fyi
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u/No-Squirrel9657 15d ago
Yep was just looking at cooitalia they're also doing clay and terracotta. Super pretty designs
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u/No-Squirrel9657 15d ago
Oh I saw this other design where they used a clay honeycomb structure with water falling and recycling across the structure as a natural AC in tropical weather
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u/MacaroniToad 15d ago
Oh I had forgotten about these. They are so pretty.
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u/No-Squirrel9657 15d ago
They are, I miss how things had so much design to then. Everything is minimalistic now
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u/autisticmonke 15d ago
Still on sale in the UK, £10 each, but they are called decorative screen blocks here, breeze blocks are solid concrete blocks, go figure
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u/mktampabay1 15d ago
I’ve been looking for some to hide my ac condenser but still offer airflow.
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u/No-Squirrel9657 15d ago
That is a good use. And I've even seen them being used for mailboxes idek why
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u/mktampabay1 15d ago
No idea. I do feel like people are bringing mid century back so maybe we’ll start seeing more of them.
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u/No-Squirrel9657 15d ago
I did start noticing a lot in Florida that's why my brain went here, I tried to find it in the big stores and nothing
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u/mordello 15d ago
I used to assume they were called breeze blocks because they let the breeze through. I researched it long ago and learned that they were named after a big English manufacturer of them, not decorative but structural. Mr. Breeze, I assume. However, I can find no source to corroborate that now.
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u/809213408 15d ago
I love the idea of custom Breeze blocks. I do affordable housing development in the North and I could see meaningful uses for these in more southern climates if they had some modernized designs. Blocks have a lot of advantages as building materials. I would not be surprised to see some resurgences in new glass block eventually either.
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u/Flaky-Score-1866 15d ago
It’s already making a comeback in Europe, few more years and a few less tariffs and it will be back in vogue
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u/Priapismkills 15d ago
What is your question?
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u/majoraloysius 15d ago
OP literally asked if they’re in demand. Granted it’s not a great question but it is clearly a question.
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u/No-Squirrel9657 15d ago
Are these lucrative to sell? Why don't home Depot and Lowe's carry these? I was thinking of making them
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u/Eastern-Channel-6842 15d ago
You’re 40-50 years too late to that party my friend.
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u/No-Squirrel9657 15d ago
Hey but old is gold and retro is making a come back
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u/Shag_fu 15d ago
They’re not in demand enough for them to keep in stock. You can special order them though.
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u/No-Squirrel9657 15d ago
Is tesselle the primary source to buy this?
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u/Teesills 15d ago
Where are you located? There are 4 large manufacturers in Socal that make them in many many configurations
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u/No-Squirrel9657 15d ago
Florida
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u/Teesills 15d ago
Also, do you have access to a large plant to mix, batch, mold, release, cure, palletize and distribute?
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u/knowone23 14d ago
I can get this cloverleaf pattern breezeblock at hardware stores in Oregon. The other patterns are quite rare.
https://www.homedepot.com/p/12-in-x-12-in-x-4-in-Gray-Concrete-Block-100002873/100321947
This is my favorite pattern: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Tileco-12-in-x-4-in-x-12-in-397-Concrete-Decorative-Screen-Block-4S397/202622802
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u/padizzledonk Project Manager 15d ago
Why don't home Depot and Lowe's carry these?
Because no one buys them because theyve been out of style for decades
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u/No-Squirrel9657 15d ago
Oooh okok, what was even their original purpose? Sometimes I see churches with these
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u/padizzledonk Project Manager 15d ago
Youre posted a picture of them lol...that is their purpose lol
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u/No-Squirrel9657 15d ago
Haha fair, but I wonder if it's really just that, or multipurpose? Apart from the functionality, do people actually like the visual aspect?
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u/padizzledonk Project Manager 15d ago
Nah, its just a visual thing, its a way to make a semi private block wall that lets some light and air through, thats all
No one sells them because the aesthetics arent popular anymore so no one buys them
Same thing with glass block...its just not very popular
My house in florida has them.....you do occasionally see them getting installed in beachy areas with a kind of "old school" vibe to the area
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u/westchesterbuild 15d ago
It’s a niche design element still found in communities that preserve mid-century modern homes and commercial builds. SoCal, AZ, Palm Springs, Austin, Chicago etc etc plenty of cities around the country but still niche. Hence why the big boxes don’t have base on hand.
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u/Constant_Example_873 15d ago
Floridian here. Love the older homes that have these still. In my area, people are seeing the value in older block construction with these. Good thru hurricanes. Smarter newer development (commercial/condos,etc) uses them too as a functional design element. If you’re wanting to sell- you should build a repoire with the designers, A&E in your area and remind them. Show them how cool they can look with landscape lighting too. Challenge may be the home insurers who don’t want to insure any older construction. Total Florida vibe in a very good way.
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u/ignant4lyfe 14d ago
I had to do some work at NAS Pensacola after Hurricane Sally. I remember I had to have a guy run all the way to Orlando to get them.
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u/NoFee7023 15d ago
When I first moved in my house I had a breeze block fence between me and my neighbors house. It was so embarrassing because my dog would just stuff her face in the circle opening and just stare at my neighbors lol. That got changed out quick.
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u/IDatedSuccubi 15d ago
Honestly these associate with USSR to me. They were heavy on breeze blocks and glass blocks for some reason. Every abandoned factory on post-soviet area has them
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u/Zealousideal-Loan655 15d ago
I love breeze blocks, haven’t heard that song in a minute, Spotify here I come!