What Would You Call This? When I was a kid, there were actual cinder blocks - blocks that were black and somewhat crude-looking. It looked like they were made from coal cinders, and...

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

When I was a kid, there were actual cinder blocks - blocks that were black and somewhat crude-looking. It looked like they were made from coal cinders, and they were rather light. Nowadays, people still use the term cinder blocks to describe what I call concrete blocks. I learned a new term last night - CMU, Concrete Masonry Unit. Someone on YouTube was discussing the collapse of a building, and he used that term to discuss those concrete blocks.

I couldn't find the video I watched, but below is a link to others. It's amazing how little some people care about safety.
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=building+collapse

The second picture turned up in a search for "cinder block," and it was actually called a "cinder block," but the ones I remember were more crude, not something anyone would use as a planter. Virtually all of the cinder block pictures were of regular concrete blocks.

BebuLamar

Thanks Jerry! I learned something. I always thought cinder block is concrete block. I didn't know there was real cinder block and the material called cinder.

jaymatt Loc: Alexandria, Indiana

The generic term "cinder block" drives me crazy. Cinder blocks are made of cinders and are basically black. Concrete blocks are made of sand and fine gravel and are gray. My dad was in the construction business; therefore, I know the difference. The misnomer is like fingernails on a chalkboard to me. A good comparison is calling all film Kodak.

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Wow, when I was little they were referred to as cinder blocks. Really lumpy and bumpy looking with lots of "spaces" between the lumps.
The first image depicts them as being much "smoother" than I remember from when I was little. It must be a concrete block.
I never saw a black one though.

MrBossHK Loc: The West Valley of Phoenix metro area

A popular technical name in the architectural, engineering and construction arenas is Concrete Masonry Unit (CMU).
In the Philippines, they are affectionately referred to as "Hollow Block".

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

jaymatt wrote:

The generic term "cinder block" drives me crazy. Cinder blocks are made of cinders and are basically black. Concrete blocks are made of sand and fine gravel and are gray. My dad was in the construction business; therefore, I know the difference. The misnomer is like fingernails on a chalkboard to me. A good comparison is calling all film Kodak.

Thank you!

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Longshadow wrote:

Wow, when I was little they were referred to as cinder blocks. Really lumpy and bumpy looking with lots of "spaces" between the lumps.
The first image depicts them as being much "smoother" than I remember from when I was little. It must be a concrete block.
I never saw a black one though.

Interesting. That's how I remember the black cinder blocks - lumpy with spaces.

Mark Sturtevant Loc: Grand Blanc, MI

We call 'em cinder blocks, but I did not know that they were different in the past.
It's funny how language evolves. Here we have an olde term that is used for its replacement. I bet there are other examples of that sort of thing.

kpmac Loc: Ragley, La

We have always called concrete blocks cinder blocks. Even as kids; and that's a long time.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

kpmac wrote:

We have always called concrete blocks cinder blocks. Even as kids; and that's a long time.

Did you have the lumpy black blocks.

When I as a kid, we were so poor that my father would go to construction sites at night and steal concrete blocks for me to play with. My parent hated it when I'd knock over a pile of blocks. I was the strongest little kid in my kindergarten class. (Kidding, of course)

chrissybabe Loc: New Zealand

My father built his house from the old style cinder blocks. He used them as you would the more modern concrete block. The blocks were finished off with concrete sprayed on with a hand wound contraption held on the chest and then painted. Very effective. The blocks were quite lite and supposedly heat insulating. A stack of them sat in the front yard for a few years afterwards. I have no idea how they were made but it was a commercial product. They looked as if they had chips of coal embedded in the blocks although now I suspect that they were chips of coke. The blocks (going on a vague memory here) were a blue grayish colour and not as damaging to young skin as a modern concrete block.

Manglesphoto Loc: 70 miles south of St.Louis

jerryc41 wrote:

When I was a kid, there were actual cinder blocks ... (show quote)

Cinder blocks started popping up in the 1950's they were made using cement and cinders as aggregate very light weight and not very strong , the first I saw used were in the shape and size of a brick (solid) and used as the inner wall of a brick structure, then along came the cinder block used the same way or where they did not have to support anything.Even as a teen Thought the cinder block was dangerous, I had a friend that was severely injured using them to support a car he was working on.

bobmcculloch Loc: NYC, NY

jerryc41 wrote:

When I was a kid, there were actual cinder blocks ... (show quote)

I remember 'cinder blocks', lighter, porous and not as strong.

bobups Loc: Bath pa

In nj they weren’t allowed to be used to build schools with them.before the cinder block they had clay block made from natco lakes in hazlet and Keansburg. A lot of buildings in Atlantic highlands were built with them.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

bobups wrote:

In nj they weren’t allowed to be used to build schools with them.

As much as the builders wanted to save money.

There was so much corruption in the construction of the Surfside condo, from the planning to the construction to the lack of maintenance. It's ironic that the owners didn't want to pay the high cost of repairs. Instead, they let it collapse on them - and collect $1 billion.