Mortar crumbling or sunk back from your brick? We clear out the worn joints and refill them so less water gets into the wall.
Brick pointing, which you'll also hear called repointing, means our crew cuts the worn mortar out of the joints in your brick and packs in new mortar, and on a house in Rancho Cucamonga it's one of the best ways to cut down on water getting into a brick wall.
Most people call us because the mortar on a chimney, a garden wall or the front of the house looks sandy, gaps have opened between the bricks, or bits of it keep turning up on the ground. The brick itself is usually fine, so the job is about renewing the joints and leaving your brick where it is. I'd rather you understand why a wall needs this before you spend anything on it.
The price moves with how much wall needs it, how deep the wear goes, how high we have to work, and whether something behind the damage, like a leak or a wall that's moving, has to be dealt with first. On older buildings, preservation guidance says pointing tends to be slow and costly, because time goes first to studying the building and finding what caused the trouble. The schedule mostly turns on whether you want a test patch and what your city asks for before we start, and the written estimate I give you puts the price for your own wall on paper.
You won't get handed off to someone new at every step. Here's who you deal with from the first look to the last walk-around.
I started this business in Rancho Cucamonga in 2023, after years selling brick and block to local masons and learning to lay and point alongside one of them. I look at the wall myself, answer your questions on the spot, and then send a written estimate you can read over without me standing there.
Trade guidance says pointing should go to people with real pointing experience, and that a fine mason isn't always one, so an experienced mason leads the brick work while I run the job on site with our crew. We're licensed and insured.
Once you say yes, we check what your city asks for on a job like yours before any mortar comes out. When the work is done, we walk the finished wall with you before we leave, and we stand behind it with one plain promise, satisfaction guaranteed.
We start by finding out why the joints wore out, because new mortar over an unsolved problem just wears out again. I'm glad to have us point a small test patch first so you can see the color and the finished joint before we commit to the whole wall, and it's a fair way to judge our pointing before you hire us. Once you're happy, we cut the worn mortar back to sound material, taking care not to chip the brick edges, and fill the joints with a mix that suits your old mortar and is no stronger than it. We tool each joint to the shape of the ones around it so the repair blends in. Some crews offer a thin coat of grout over the joints instead, but federal preservation guidance says that's no substitute for pointing, since the grout spreads onto the brick, makes the joints look wider and leaves a film behind.
Sometimes the joints are only the symptom. If cracks run through the mortar because the house is settling, new joints won't hold until that's fixed, so we'll talk with you about foundation repair first. Chimneys stand out in the weather on every side and often need more than new mortar, which is where chimney repair comes in.
Every wall is a little different, but the work usually goes in this order.
We look over the whole wall, not just the worst joints, for things like a gutter dumping water on it or a crack that points to movement underneath. If something else is driving the damage, I'll tell you plainly so you can decide what to fix first.
You look at the test patch, or at the joints we're matching, and tell us it looks right. We don't go on to the rest of the wall until you're comfortable with it.
This part is careful, slow work, and cutting out old mortar is loud, so plan for some noise at home while the crew is there. We work a section at a time so open joints don't sit exposed longer than they need to.
We brush mortar crumbs off the brick faces and clear the dust from your beds and walks. I'll also tell you what to watch for in the first few months, which is covered in the questions below.
Send the form or call (909) 360-4010, and we'll reply within one business day. I'll come out to look at the joints with you, answer your questions and send a free written estimate, with no obligation to go ahead. A few photos of the worn joints and a note on whether your home is a designated historic property help me get ready for the visit.
(909) 360-4010Your brick likely needs repointing if the mortar has worn back more than a quarter inch from the face, crumbles, has holes or hairline cracks, or has pulled away from the brick. Those are the signs trade guidance lists, and you can check for them yourself on a walk around the house. If you spot a few, send us photos and we'll take it from there.
The new mortar has to be as strong as the old mortar or weaker, not stronger. A harder mix puts stress right where the brick meets the joint, and the brick face can spall, or flake off, which is lasting damage that new pointing can't undo. That's why the mix gets chosen for your wall rather than grabbed as the hardest one on the shelf.
Mortar joints typically last more than 25 years, while the bricks can go well past 100. So over the life of a house you can expect to renew the joints now and then and keep your original brick. Pointing with the right mix is what lets that brick stay put.
That white bloom is called efflorescence, and it occasionally shows up in the first few months after pointing and usually fades as the wall weathers. If it hangs on, the safest way to remove it is dry brushing with a stiff natural or nylon bristle brush, then brushing again wet. Skip muriatic acid, because preservation guidance says it generally doesn't work on this and shouldn't be used.
We check what the city asks for on your kind of job before any mortar comes out, and when a permit is needed we handle the application and line up the inspections. The city's Building and Safety Department takes permit applications online. If your house is a designated Historic Landmark or a contributing resource, I'll ask you to confirm that with the city's planning office first, because work on those homes can need a Certificate of Appropriateness from the Historic Preservation Commission or the Planning Director. Repairs that use the same kind, type and texture of material already there, on things like chimneys and fireplaces, may go to the Planning Director for review.
California raised the limit for small jobs done without a contractor's license from $500 to $1,000, but that only covers work that needs no permit, done by someone with nobody working for them on the job. So a crew that shows up with helpers isn't covered by it, whatever the price. We're based in Rancho Cucamonga and point brick on chimneys, garden walls and house fronts across the cities around it, including Upland, Ontario, Fontana, Chino and more, and if your city isn't listed, ask us.
If you're not sure your joints need pointing yet, call (909) 360-4010 and I'll talk you through what to look for before you decide anything.
If something about your brick or mortar has you wondering, send me the question and I'll answer it plainly.
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