Masonry restoration in Athens, GA - mortar joints that protect your brick
Crumbling or recessed mortar lets water into your brick. We replace the worn joints by hand and keep the sound ones in place.
Is it time to restore the brick on your Athens house?
On most walls we see, masonry restoration in Athens, GA comes down to repointing. We clear the worn mortar out of the joints in your brick or stone wall and pack in fresh mortar, so water and salts stay out of the brick itself. Mortar is the part of a wall that's meant to be renewed, and keeping it in good shape is how the brick lasts.
Most people call us after they notice sandy grit at the base of a wall, gaps along the joints, or mortar that's sunk back from the brick face on a chimney or an older house. The price mostly follows how many joints are actually worn, because this is slow handwork and we only redo the bad ones, along with how high and hard to reach the wall is and whether it needs cleaning too. The schedule usually turns on whether your house is in a local historic district, which adds a review before exterior work, and on the weather if the wall needs washing. The estimate I write up tells you what we'll do on your wall and why. The Athens-Clarke County permit office notes that Georgia requires a state contractor license for work costing $2,500 or more, and we're fully licensed and insured.
What happens after you call us about your brick?
Call or send the form
Call (706) 395-0746 or send the form, and tell us where the mortar looks worn and how long you've noticed it. We'll set a time for me to come out to your house.
I look at the wall with you
I walk the wall with you, listen to what you've seen and answer your questions, then write up an estimate that says which joints need work, what we'll do and why. Since we only redo the worn joints, you can see on paper exactly what you're paying for.
We handle permits and the work
Once you say yes, we take care of any permit the job needs, including the application and inspections with the city or county office for your address. If your home is in a local historic district, I'll bring that up at the estimate so the review fits your plans, and I work alongside our crew once we start.
We walk the finished wall together
When the joints are done and the site is cleaned up, we walk the wall with you and go over what we did. It's a good time to ask anything you still want to know, even if you've asked it before.
How we handle masonry restoration and the work around it
I start by marking the joints that are crumbling, hollow or worn back, because sound original mortar is better left where it is than replaced, and on an older wall that's often a good share of it. Our crew takes the worn mortar out by hand with chisels and small hammers. It's slower than cutting with a grinder, but a grinder in unpracticed hands can chew up the edges of soft old brick, so it's fair to ask any crew how they plan to get the old joints out. We mix the new mortar to suit your wall, pack the joints and tool them to match the old ones so the repair doesn't stand out. If the wall needs cleaning too, we go gentle with the water so the face of the brick stays intact, and we clean up before we leave. What I'm after is fixing whatever is really letting water in, not just the patch you can see from the yard.
Restoration often turns up other work on the same house. When the brick around an old fireplace is past repointing, or you're redoing the room anyway, we also do fireplace installation with the same care for the masonry around it. If you want stone on a wall that's never had it, or a section of old stone facing needs replacing, that's stone veneer installation. We're based in Athens and do this work across the cities around it, with Commerce, Jefferson, Monroe and Winder among them.
Request a free estimate for your worn mortar joints
Send the form and we'll get back to you within one business day to set a time for me to come out and look at the wall with you. The estimate is free, done on site at your home, and you're under no obligation to go ahead. Every job we take on is backed by our satisfaction guarantee.
Repointing questions from Athens homeowners
How do I know if my brick needs repointing?
Your brick needs repointing when the mortar is crumbling, has gaps or hairline cracks, or has worn back more than 1/4 inch from the face of the brick. Only the defective joints need repair, so a few bad patches don't mean redoing the whole wall. If you're not sure what you're looking at, I'm glad to come take a look with you.
What kind of mortar should be used to repoint old brick?
The new mortar should be softer than the brick it holds, so water and salts work their way out through the joints instead of through the brick. If the mortar ends up the harder part, the bricks take the wear instead, and a brick is a lot harder to replace than a joint. Ask any crew how they'll match the mix to your wall, and I'll go over ours at the estimate.
Is power washing safe for old brick in Athens?
Power washing at too high a pressure can easily etch some types of brick and soft stone, so it's worth asking any crew what pressure they use. Water cleaning also needs to happen when frost is unlikely, because water left in the wall can freeze and cause flaking and cracking, and a wall can take over a week to dry. We keep the pressure gentle and plan any washing well ahead of cold weather.
What approvals do I need for brick work in an Athens historic district?
If your property is in one of the county's 16 local historic districts or is one of its 44 local landmarks, you need a Certificate of Appropriateness before making exterior changes. The county's design guidelines set the criteria for judging those changes, apart from the Milledge Avenue and Downtown historic districts. Building permit applications go to the county's building inspections department by email, fax or mail, and we handle the permit side and raise the historic review early.
How much does masonry restoration cost in Athens, GA?
The cost mostly follows how many joints need new mortar, because repointing is slow, labor-heavy work and a job limited to the worn joints takes less of it. The wall's height and reach, the condition of the brick and whether it needs cleaning also move the price. I'll give you a written estimate after looking at your wall, since that's the way to know how much old mortar has to come out.
How long does repointed mortar last?
Mortar joints typically last more than 25 years, while the brick itself may well last more than 100. That's why the joints are the part of a brick wall to plan on renewing, and how long they hold up depends on how exposed the wall is and the mortar that went in. A chimney or a wall that takes a lot of weather usually needs it sooner.
Other masonry work on the same house
Fireplace installation
When an old firebox or surround is past saving, or the room needs a hearth it never had, we can build a new fireplace that suits your brick.
Stone veneer installation
Stone facing can cover a plain block foundation or replace worn stone panels, giving part of the house a new face without rebuilding the wall.
Send us photos of your worn joints
Call (706) 395-0746 or use the form, and a few photos plus a note on whether your home is in a historic district let me come out ready to talk about your wall.