![Common mud brick home. It does dissolve every time it rains.](https://www.worthyhands.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/20191116_103301-2.jpg)
The most common brick used to build homes is Malawi is a simple mud brick. Mud bricks are simple and easy to manufacture on site. They are basically on-site soil that is hand shaped and placed in the sun to dry. They will dissolve when the winter rains come. Some homeowners will make a mortar to plaster over and coat the bricks to enable them to last longer. While this method works, the homeowner still needs to purchase the cement, which costs money.
![Burnt Brick factory](https://www.worthyhands.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_2812-1.jpg)
![Burnt Brick stack](https://www.worthyhands.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_2175-scaled.jpg)
Burnt brick are commonly used in the home building process in Africa. Burnt bricks are mud bricks that have been “burnt” in a makeshift oven. Because of the high heat firing, burnt bricks will last longer than traditional mud bricks. However, they still dissolve during the rainy season, just not as fast as a non-burnt brick. Burnt brick are a status symbol. Many homeowners will only plaster the front of their house leaving most of the side wall exposed to showcase their status. This is commonly known as “billboarding”, since a billboard size area is left for observers to admire the status of the homeowner.
It takes about 4 to 6 piles of burnt bricks to make a standard home. This process uses over 6,000 lbs. of wood to “Burn” them. It contributes massively to deforestation and CO2 emissions.
![](https://www.worthyhands.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/PB160105.jpg)