r/BeAmazed • u/Gjore • 1d ago
Miscellaneous / Others In England you sometimes see these "wavy" brick fences. And curious as it may seem, this shape uses FEWER bricks than a straight wall. A straight wall needs at least two layers of bricks to make is sturdy, but the wavy wall is fine thanks to the arch support provided by the waves.
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u/Calm_Project723 1d ago
Eladio Diesde did that on a huge scale in Uruguay, the arch, or curve, provides strength. This church is said to used 1/2 the bricks that would have been needed without the curve.
But yes, nice fence.
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u/Hopeful_Sweet5238 1d ago
I've literally never seen a wavy wall anywhere in England. Source: English
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u/autobauss 1d ago
I see them everywhere, daily almost. Source: reddit reposts
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u/Killboypowerhed 1d ago
I'm English. This repost is literally the only place I've seen these common walls
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u/Twitxx 1d ago
I have, in the West Midlands, quite a few places. Maybe it's a regional thing? Usually on estates but I've seen a few in residential areas just outside the main cities.
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u/Anxious_backPassage 1d ago
Where please ? I do wish to visit one!
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u/Twitxx 1d ago
Coventry, Warwick, Bath, to name a few. There is quite a big one on the route between Coventry and Warwick University, it's a really long road that people hike and bike all the time because of the view. (It's around 4 miles long so usually you take the bus)
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u/SassySirennn 1d ago
https://maps.app.goo.gl/6krWevW2CwXX5BN48?g_st=ic here is one near where I live
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u/drmarting25102 1d ago
Yeah I've seen them around a couple of estates but was long ago and I cant remember exactly where.
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u/Fellstorm_1991 1d ago
It's a regional thing. There's a quite a few in Suffolk. Usually around manors or stately homes who don't mind the extra space they use for a fancy looking wall.
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u/Anxious_backPassage 1d ago
I think i might have seen one around 1984 somewere in Dorset.......but as I was 10 at the time im not sure my memory is correct. Not seen a Brick Fence however.
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u/KeldornWithCarsomyr 1d ago
I have however seen 1000s of single layer straight brick walls, highlighting the BS behind "needing 2 layers"
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u/Chrono_Convoy 1d ago edited 1d ago
OMFG it’s called a SERPENTINE WALL
“Wavy wall” sounds like a description coming from the guy selling a lawnmower by a gas station named T Top Taylor
And they’re far from exclusive to England
Chicago, Boulder and UVA sport them in the US
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u/Kimantha_Allerdings 1d ago
In the UK they’re primarily called “crinkle crankle walls”
That’s even the name of the Wikipedia entry
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u/Ok_Support3 1d ago
At this point can we just call them wibbly-wobbly walls?
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u/PhosphoFred8202 1d ago
Wibbly-wobbly-wiggley-waggley-woo-woo-bibbity-bobbity walls in Australia
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u/Kimantha_Allerdings 1d ago
Surely they’d just be something like a “wobbleo”?
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u/PhosphoFred8202 1d ago
For short, but on the tax maps and other government documents, filed away in the capital in Vienna, you neeed to use the full name
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u/ARobertNotABob 1d ago
Serpentine wall, crinkle-crankle wall, wavy wall, all are legitimately used names for corrugated brick walls.
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u/Ornery-Smoke9075 1d ago
My guy a massive portion of the population of USA is descended from brits this is why the early architecture reflects that.
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u/Chrono_Convoy 1d ago
I never disputed that
I said it’s not solely an English style
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u/Ornery-Smoke9075 1d ago
But it is?
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u/Chrono_Convoy 1d ago
How can it be solely English if it exists outside of the country?
It originates from England
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u/Intro-Nimbus 1d ago
Sushi isn't exclusive to Japan, but I believe the consensus is that it's a Japanese dish.
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u/CarinasHere 1d ago
They also radiate sun warmth well for gardening.
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u/Tar_alcaran 1d ago
Yeah, quite a few warm(ish) weather plants can survive in the UK thanks to snakewalls like these
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u/Dead-Face 1d ago
Is the wall still sturdy in the concave or hollow inner parts? I can see it being sturdy in the convex parts but I'm not sure about the rest.
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u/SMKnightly 1d ago
The concave part on one side is just the convex part of the other side
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u/Dead-Face 1d ago
But you're not approaching it on the convex part but the concave side. Hammering one side is not the same as hammering the other.
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u/SMKnightly 1d ago
Why are you hammering brick walls? That’s not the normal forces they have to resist. They’re not designed for that
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u/Dead-Face 1d ago
That's just an example to make a point. Why don't you focus on my point itself?
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u/SMKnightly 1d ago
No brick wall is designed to endure hammering. Why not use an example that actually makes your point?
As for your point, arches that continue are actually strong in tension as well as compression, so the actual strength of the wall to resist a force against the inside of the arch depends on the tensile strength of the mortar used.
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u/Dead-Face 19h ago
Brick walls can definitely endure hammering. It depends on the intensity and frequency. And the example makes a point. The different sides could have different thresholds.
That doesn't actually tackle my point. You're just saying the material is important, which is obvious.
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u/Spartan2470 1d ago
Here is the source of the image on the left. Credit to the photographer, Steve Bougeno.
Taken: Nov 11, 2015
wind break at Shaw nature reserve [in Missouri]
Here is the source of the image on the right. Credit to the photographer, Nat Bockingm who took that on January 20, 2006 in Bramfield, Suffolk.
Here it is via Google Street View.
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u/SedentorySensor77 1d ago
Brick fences…. Eh?! Never heard that expression and lifelong UK person. Never seen a wavy wall.
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u/Parking-Tip1685 1d ago
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brick_tax
It's mainly because Britain had a brick tax to help pay for American war of independence. You paid tax per brick and crinkle crinkle walls are stronger than single course walls. The brick tax is also why a lot of houses used larger bricks back then.
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u/beck_is_back 1d ago
Interesting although I lived here for 24 years now and not seen one even once! 😅😂
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u/Bah_weep_grana 21h ago
OF COURSE it would take more bricks if the wall was two layers thick! Who would think otherwise? Is this obvious fact supposed to blow my mind?
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