Brick Veneer
CSI Division 04, Masonry
A single layer of brick attached to the outside of a building's actual structural wall (wood frame, steel, or CMU) purely as an exterior finish: the brick carries its own weight but isn't part of the structure holding the building up, unlike a solid masonry wall.
Why it matters
Because brick veneer isn't structural, the connection details behind it, the air gap, flashing, weep holes, and ties that anchor it back to the structural wall, are what actually keep water from getting behind the brick and into the building, and those details are entirely hidden once the veneer is finished.
On a real project
A wood-framed house has brick veneer installed with a required air gap behind it, flashing at the base and above openings to direct any water that gets behind the brick back out through weep holes, rather than letting it soak into the wood framing.
Who this matters most to
A Mason installs brick veneer and its ties, but coordinating the flashing behind it, often installed by a different trade, is what determines whether the assembly actually keeps water out. A Quality Control Manager inspects flashing and weep hole placement before the brick veneer covers it up for good.
Where this goes wrong
A mason installs brick veneer over flashing that wasn't properly lapped by the trade that installed it, creating a gap water can pass through. Years after occupancy, water intrusion rots the wood framing behind the veneer, discovered only once the damage is extensive enough to show up as staining or a musty smell inside the building.