Yep, that would be part of the behaviour. Essentially, the terracotta skin can end up in compression - and like anything that is under compression, sudden relief of that compressive load (stress) by cutting out a unit can lead to cracking of other adjacent portions of the system. David West Executive Director internationalconservationservices T: +61 (2) 9417 3311 M: +61 (411) 692 696 E: [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]> W: www.icssydney.com <http://www.icssydney.com/> sustaining your heritage ________________________________ From: The listserv where the buildings do the talking [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Gabriel Orgrease Sent: Monday, 21 December 2009 9:45 AM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: [BP] eyebrows have it On 12/20/2009 3:20 PM, David West wrote: If the building is 14 stories high, and the terracotta was all stacked into place, this means that there is nowhere for any stress relief. At one time we did a selective remove/replace of flat tc units in an art deco construction (1920s) and what we found was that when we took out a unit of tc that the units around it would suddenly crack. I presume it was due to relief of stress. A structural engineer was never brought in to look at that problem. It was not the mechanics or sloppy removal work. The project required something like a doubling of the quantity of units to be fabricated than had been originally assumed. ][<en -- **Please remember to trim posts, as requested in the Terms of Service** To terminate puerile preservation prattling among pals and the uncoffee-ed, or to change your settings, go to: http://listserv.icors.org/archives/bullamanka-pinheads.html -- **Please remember to trim posts, as requested in the Terms of Service** To terminate puerile preservation prattling among pals and the uncoffee-ed, or to change your settings, go to: <http://listserv.icors.org/archives/bullamanka-pinheads.html>