Answers.Body: <p>Without more information, it's hard to know what can be causing the gaps. My theory is that the structure has gotten large enough that the spacing in the bricks is adding up such that your structure is no longer "square".</p>
  
  <p>According to this page, there is a 0.1mm gap between two bricks attached to a common base. This gap makes it possible to remove the bricks once they've been placed. Also, Lego claims their manufacturing process has a tolerance of 0.01mm (10 microns). With a long enough structure, those mm add up.</p>
  
  <p><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/jerac/16262894924" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Here is an example of the gap in play</a>
  <a href="https://i.sstatic.net/FcH4p.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/FcH4p.jpg" alt="enter image description here"></a></p>
  
  <p>There are the same number of plates on the left and on the right. The left ones are all pushed together, the right ones are attached to a baseplate (or some other 16-stud plate or brick). Because each plate has a 0.1mm gap, multiplied by 16 plates gives 1.6mm difference. Even if the 0.1mm isn't the right value, you can see that there IS a gap and it is large enough to be significant over a small distance.</p>
  
  <p>When you are building a very large creation, inevitably some things won't want to fit properly. I am building a multi-story building using 1xN bricks for the walls (mostly 1x2 and 1x4 bricks). Each story is the same size as the previous one, and each one is re-inforced by the flooring and internal walls, but it's painfully obvious that the different stories don't fit well together. When I take one story off another, it doesn't want to snap back into position later.</p>
  
  <p>It's even possible to take advantage of the gaps to make curves. If you make a long enough wall out of 2x1 bricks, you can <a href="https://bricks.stackexchange.com/a/1023/52">physically bend it into a circle.</a> </p>
  
  <p>As far as advice on how to avoid this problem, I don't really have anything concrete. One thing you could try to do is to space things uniformly, using the same kinds of pieces all the time. If you build a long strip using 2x4 bricks on one side, and 2x2 bricks on the other, you may find that they are not the same length even though they have the same number of studs. Or, design your creation in modular sections, counting on the fact that it will not quite meet at section boundaries. This is how people build bridges: they are frequently designed to allow for expansion and contraction of the bridge sections by placing seams that allow for the change in size as the bridge temperature changes.</p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2015-07-31T20:08:23.210Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2015-07-31T20:08:23.210Z
Answers.LastEditDate: 2017-04-13T12:47:56.390Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: Mr. Shiny and New 安宇
Body: <p>I am building a large project, and there are spaces developing between bricks and plates. I've been working on it for almost a year, and some places are 20+ bricks high. What can cause this over time? Can plates get soft and warp? If the weather is warm, can this affect it? Has anyone else had this problem? Also... As many times as I've undone and re-done sections, some places won't level out and can be less than one plate off in height.I would love some advice. Thanks!</p>
  
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2015-06-29T22:52:48.010Z
Comments.Text: I'd say it depends on the brand and quality of the bricks.  I've seen this happen with Megabloks, but LEGO seems to be higher quality than most other bricks.  What brand of bricks are you using?
Comments.UserDisplayName: ps2goat
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2015-06-30T01:58:05.053Z
Comments.Text: I am only using official Lego blocks and plates. It's just so strange how these gaps/spaces are showing up about 15 brick heights down, so it's really too hard to un-do everything to reach these spots. And I really can't figure out why I can't even things out in other places. It starts out level & then suddenly it's no longer level. My fingers are raw from tearing out and re-building. Anyway... Thanks for answering! I'd include a picture if I could.
Comments.UserDisplayName: LegoPatient
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2015-06-30T06:23:53.440Z
Comments.Text: Are the bricks old? I've seen older bricks and plates getting warped, but newer (say, roughly 1985 and forward) generally holds up well. If we had an image we might be able to see if you're putting stress on some of the bricks, since that can also be a cause of disfigurement.
Comments.UserDisplayName: Linus Bohman
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2015-06-30T08:36:08.697Z
Comments.Text: Are you building on a hard surface, or soft?
Comments.UserDisplayName: gev
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2015-06-30T11:14:36.540Z
Comments.Text: A photo might help us diagnose the issue.
Comments.UserDisplayName: Kramii
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2015-06-30T16:06:30.620Z
Comments.Text: Lego bricks are built to certain tolerances. Maybe your structure is large enough that rounding errors are creeping in?
Comments.UserDisplayName: Mr. Shiny and New 安宇
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2015-07-01T07:27:12.993Z
Comments.Text: @LegoPatient Let me know if there is anything I can help you with in order to get a picture posted, since it would make the question much clearer (Are there vertical or horizontal spaces? How big or regular they are? Are the parts otherwise lined up?) and we could help you more efficiently.
Comments.UserDisplayName: zovits
Tags: <building>
Title: My building is developing gaps and spaces
UserDisplayName: LegoPatient
ThreadText: # My building is developing gaps and spaces
  
  (Asked by: username_0 on 2015-06-29)
  
  I am building a large project, and there are spaces developing between bricks and plates. I've been working on it for almost a year, and some places are 20+ bricks high. What can cause this over time? Can plates get soft and warp? If the weather is warm, can this affect it? Has anyone else had this problem? Also... As many times as I've undone and re-done sections, some places won't level out and can be less than one plate off in height.I would love some advice. Thanks!
  
  **Tags:** building
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_1**: I'd say it depends on the brand and quality of the bricks.  I've seen this happen with Megabloks, but LEGO seems to be higher quality than most other bricks.  What brand of bricks are you using?  
  > **username_0**: I am only using official Lego blocks and plates. It's just so strange how these gaps/spaces are showing up about 15 brick heights down, so it's really too hard to un-do everything to reach these spots. And I really can't figure out why I can't even things out in other places. It starts out level & then suddenly it's no longer level. My fingers are raw from tearing out and re-building. Anyway... Thanks for answering! I'd include a picture if I could.  
  > **username_2**: Are the bricks old? I've seen older bricks and plates getting warped, but newer (say, roughly 1985 and forward) generally holds up well. If we had an image we might be able to see if you're putting stress on some of the bricks, since that can also be a cause of disfigurement.  
  > **username_3**: Are you building on a hard surface, or soft?  
  > **username_4**: A photo might help us diagnose the issue.  
  > **username_5**: Lego bricks are built to certain tolerances. Maybe your structure is large enough that rounding errors are creeping in?  
  > **username_6**: @LegoPatient Let me know if there is anything I can help you with in order to get a picture posted, since it would make the question much clearer (Are there vertical or horizontal spaces? How big or regular they are? Are the parts otherwise lined up?) and we could help you more efficiently.  
  
  ---
  
  ## 1 answers
  
  ### Answer by username_5 on 2015-07-31. Score: 1
  
  Without more information, it's hard to know what can be causing the gaps. My theory is that the structure has gotten large enough that the spacing in the bricks is adding up such that your structure is no longer "square".
  
  According to this page, there is a 0.1mm gap between two bricks attached to a common base. This gap makes it possible to remove the bricks once they've been placed. Also, Lego claims their manufacturing process has a tolerance of 0.01mm (10 microns). With a long enough structure, those mm add up.
  
  [Here is an example of the gap in play](https://www.flickr.com/photos/jerac/16262894924)
  [![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/FcH4p.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/FcH4p.jpg)
  
  There are the same number of plates on the left and on the right. The left ones are all pushed together, the right ones are attached to a baseplate (or some other 16-stud plate or brick). Because each plate has a 0.1mm gap, multiplied by 16 plates gives 1.6mm difference. Even if the 0.1mm isn't the right value, you can see that there IS a gap and it is large enough to be significant over a small distance.
  
  When you are building a very large creation, inevitably some things won't want to fit properly. I am building a multi-story building using 1xN bricks for the walls (mostly 1x2 and 1x4 bricks). Each story is the same size as the previous one, and each one is re-inforced by the flooring and internal walls, but it's painfully obvious that the different stories don't fit well together. When I take one story off another, it doesn't want to snap back into position later.
  
  It's even possible to take advantage of the gaps to make curves. If you make a long enough wall out of 2x1 bricks, you can [physically bend it into a circle.](https://bricks.stackexchange.com/a/1023/52)
  
  As far as advice on how to avoid this problem, I don't really have anything concrete. One thing you could try to do is to space things uniformly, using the same kinds of pieces all the time. If you build a long strip using 2x4 bricks on one side, and 2x2 bricks on the other, you may find that they are not the same length even though they have the same number of studs. Or, design your creation in modular sections, counting on the fact that it will not quite meet at section boundaries. This is how people build bridges: they are frequently designed to allow for expansion and contraction of the bridge sections by placing seams that allow for the change in size as the bridge temperature changes.
  
  
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