Crumbling or cracked mortar lets water into your wall. We repoint the joints with mortar matched to your brick, so the original brick stays put.
Brick repair in Summerville, SC usually means repointing. We cut the worn mortar out of the joints between your bricks and fill them with new mortar, so the joints are renewed and the original brick stays in your wall.
On most houses we look at, the bricks themselves are fine. The joints are what wear, and once they open up, water has a way into the wall. Repointing renews those joints so the wall stays sound, and you don't have to tear out brick that would be hard to match.
The price moves with how many joints need cutting out, how deep the wear goes, how high the wall is and how we reach it, and whether a gutter or drainage fix has to come first. The schedule turns on that same drainage fix, on any permit or historic district approval your address needs, and on good working weather. Your written estimate puts your own figure down, with the materials and steps spelled out.
Three things shape a repair before any new mortar goes in. They're how strong the new mix is, how the old mortar comes out, and what the white bloom on your wall is telling you.
Repointing mortar should be about as strong as the original or weaker, because a stronger mix can make the brick face pop off, what masons call spalling. So a harder mortar is no upgrade on an older wall, since the old brick takes the damage. We choose the mortar to suit your wall, not the strongest bag on the shelf.
Hand chisels take more labor, but in most cases they're the least risk to old brick and leave the best finished joint. On thin joints, which most brick walls have, power saws almost always chip brick edges and overcut the vertical joints. That matters most on older homes, where the brick is often softer.
That white powder on brick is efflorescence. Some right after a wall is built is just normal drying as the new wall gives up water. When it keeps coming back long after that, it likely means water is getting into the wall and staying there, which is why we look for the source before we repoint.
From the first call to the final walk-through, here's who does what. I measure and write the estimate myself, and our own crew does the work while I check it.
Call (843) 376-1285 or use the form and tell us what you're seeing on the wall. Let us know where the house is and whether it's in the historic district or has an HOA.
I come out, look the wall over, measure the worn joints and ask what you want the repair to do. You get a written estimate with the materials, the steps and anything not included, so you can compare it side by side.
Before we start, I check with the office that covers your address about permits. Our crew fixes any water problem first, then cuts out and repoints the joints, and I check the work as it goes.
When it's done, we walk the wall with you and leave the site clean. From there, keeping your gutters and downspouts running clear is the main thing that helps the new joints last.
I start with the water, not the mortar. If a gutter or downspout is washing out the joints, we point that out and get it fixed before we repoint, because otherwise the new mortar just washes out again. A leaking downspout gets replaced and any other drainage problem on that wall gets sorted first. Then we turn to the joints.
Before anyone mixes mortar, I mark out which joints come out and how far, so the repair covers the failing work and leaves sound joints alone. We clean the joints out, fill them with mortar suited to your wall, and tool them to match the joints around them. I check each section as it goes, the way I learned on commercial work.
Sometimes the water hitting your brick starts farther out in the yard. When that's the case I'll tell you, and if it makes sense we can also quote driveway pavers or retaining wall construction as part of a plan that moves the water before it reaches the house.
If the wear is confined to one area, like the strip under a bad downspout, we can repoint just that section. When joints are failing across a wall, doing all of it at once keeps the color and finish even.
Old joints are usually tooled to a particular shape. We match that shape and the mortar's color and texture as closely as we can, so the repair blends in and doesn't show as a patch.
Send a few photos of the cracked or crumbling joints and tell us if your home is in the historic district. We'll reply within one business day and set a time for me to come out and measure. The on-site estimate is free, with no obligation to book.
(843) 376-1285In Summerville, Dorchester County's Building Services Department issues building permits for residential renovations. Whether your brick repair needs one isn't something we guess at. We find out whether your address is inside city limits or in the county, check with the office that covers it, and handle the permit and inspections when the job needs them.
Homes in Summerville's local historic district have one more step. Changes there need Board of Architectural Review approval before the permit application, and a Certificate of Approval is generally required for exterior changes, including a change of materials, however old the building is. The district's design guidelines say a repair that matches the existing feature in design, materials and exterior appearance needs no Certificate. When your job does need approval, we help you line it up.
Most of our brick repair calls come from owners of older brick homes, and we see the same thing in nearby cities like Goose Creek and Ladson. The bricks are usually in decent shape while the joints have worn back, often worst where water runs down the wall. We handle it the same way there as here, starting with the water and matching the repair to the wall.
I learned brick, block and stone on a big commercial outfit, where each course got measured and checked before anyone moved on. I started Legacy Summerville Concrete and Masonry in Summerville in 2013 to bring that way of working to homes. That's 13 years of repointing and brick repair, done with mortar chosen to suit the wall.
I come out to look at your wall and measure it myself. Our own crew does the repair, and I check it as it goes, because I'd rather spend an extra hour checking than have you find a problem down the road. We're fully licensed and insured. Satisfaction guaranteed on every job. When you're ready, call (843) 376-1285 or use our contact form to set up a visit.
If your old driveway has settled and sends rain toward the house, a paver drive set on a packed base can be graded to carry water off instead.
When a slope in your yard keeps pushing soil and runoff against a wall or bed, a retaining wall built with drainage behind it holds the ground back.
We're based in Summerville and work across the cities around it in Dorchester, Berkeley and Charleston counties. The cities below have their own pages, and if yours isn't listed, we're still glad to hear from you.
Your mortar needs repair when the joints crumble, have voids or hairline cracks, show cracks between the brick and the mortar, or have worn back more than 1/4 in. deep. Those are the signs that call for repointing. If you're seeing them, send us a photo and I'll come measure.
Mortar joints typically last more than 25 years, while the bricks may well last over 100. So a brick wall usually needs its joints redone from time to time and keeps the same brick for its whole life. How long your joints hold up varies with the weather that side of the house faces and the mortar used.
Brick repair is priced from what I measure on your wall, and your figure comes in the written estimate. Repointing only the failed section costs less than doing the whole wall, though a big wall with wear everywhere is usually better done at once. Working high on a two-story wall means scaffolding, which adds to the job.
In South Carolina, home repair jobs over $500 are handled by residential specialty contractors, and the Masons class is the one that covers brick repair. You can check a contractor with the state licensing board. It's also worth asking how they'll take out the old mortar, since power tools in unskilled hands can be disastrous for older, soft brick.
Most of the time on a brick repair goes into taking out the old mortar, so the size of the worn area sets the pace. A gutter or downspout fix comes before the joints, and in the historic district any approval comes before the permit, so either can add time before we start. I'll lay out the order of work in your estimate.
Clear the area along the wall so the crew can set up, moving furniture, grills and potted plants and trimming back shrubs that touch the brick. If you can, watch the wall in a hard rain and note where gutters overflow or downspouts spill, since that's often where the joints are worst.
Our phones are on until 11 PM every day, so you can call (843) 376-1285 after work or use the form and get a visit set up.
