Brick pointing in Richmond, CA - mortar joints that keep the water out of your walls
Mortar crumbling, sunk back or pulling away from your brick? We rake out the worn joints and repack them with mortar that suits the brick.
- Fully licensed and insured.
- Free quotes on site.
- We reply within 1 business day.
Do your brick joints need repointing, or just a closer look?
Brick pointing in Richmond, CA means cutting out the worn mortar between your bricks and packing the joints with fresh mortar, and it's one of the most effective, longest-lasting ways to keep water out of an older brick wall, chimney or garden wall.
Usually you've noticed sandy grit along the bottom of a wall, or joints that have sunk back behind the face of the brick, and you're wondering how far it goes. What moves the price is how many joints need work, how high the wall runs and how we get up to it, and whether soft brick means we cut the old mortar out by hand, and those same things set how long we're on site. When I walk the wall with you, the written estimate spells out which joints we'd redo and what mortar we'd use, so you have a number for your own house.
How do you know your brick joints are wearing out?
Mortar sunk behind the brick
When the mortar sits back from the face of the brick, it's been washing out slowly and leaves a little ledge where rain sits. Caught early, that usually means repointing the worst joints, not a whole wall.
Sandy, crumbling mortar
If you can rub a joint out with your thumb, or you find grit piling up on a sill or the ground, the mortar has lost most of what held it together. Left alone, open joints let water into the wall, and that's when the bricks themselves start to suffer.
Cracks along the brick
Fine cracks in the mortar, or a thin gap where mortar has pulled away from a brick, give water an easy way in. Most are plain wear, but cracks that run in a staircase through a wall can mean something is moving, and I'll check that before we touch the joints.
How we do brick pointing
I start by looking at the brick and the mortar that's in it now, because that tells me how hard we can go at it and what we should mix. On older soft brick we take the old mortar out by hand where it makes sense, because a grinder in a hurry can chew up the edges, and when we do use a grinder, we run it with dust collection. Then we brush out and dampen the joints, pack the new mortar in, tool it to the same shape as the joints your wall already has, and clean the brick face before we leave.
Pointing is often one piece of a bigger repair. On a chimney the bricks near the top usually go first, and if they're loose or the cap is cracked, we handle it as chimney repair so the whole stack gets sorted at once. If a wall is cracking because the house is settling, new mortar would just crack again, so I'd look at foundation repair first and point the joints after.
Spot repointing
This suits a wall where the wear is in patches, like the side that takes the rain or the top of a chimney, and the rest is sound. We redo just those joints and match the mortar so the repair doesn't stand out.
Full repointing
This suits a wall where the joints are worn all over, since patching here and there would only have you calling us back for the next patch. Doing the whole face at once also gives you one even color across the wall.
Get a written estimate for your brick pointing
We reply within one business day to set up a visit. I'll come out, look over your joints with you and send a free written estimate, with no pressure and no obligation.
(510) 369-4799- Based in
- Richmond, CA 94804
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 8 AM–10 PM, Sat–Sun: 7 AM–9 PM
What happens when you call us about brick pointing in Richmond?
Here's how a pointing job runs from your first call to the last swept-up pile of mortar dust, and who you'll deal with at each step.
Call or send the form
Reach us at (510) 369-4799 or through the form, and we'll get back to you to set up a time to see the wall. Let us know if it's a chimney, a house wall or a garden wall so I come ready.
Walk the wall together
I come out, look over the joints and the brick with you, and send you a written estimate. It spells out which joints we'd redo, how we'd get the old mortar out and what mortar we'd use, so you know what you're paying for before anything starts.
Our crew does the work
Our own crew cuts out and repacks the joints, with me on site running the job. We clean the brick and the ground around it before we call it done.
Why Richmond homeowners call Stonework Richmond Concrete and Masonry for brick pointing
You deal with the owner
I come out to look at the job and walk it with you, and I'm on site running our own crew until the work is done. If your joints are fine, I'll tell you so, because old brick treated well will outlast all of us.
In business since 2013
I framed houses for years until a mason I worked alongside got me hooked on brick, and I still check every wall for plumb out of carpenter habit. Repointing old brick is a big part of what we're known for today.
Licensed in California and insured
We're fully licensed and insured. You're welcome to look up our license with the state board before you sign, and I'd encourage you to do that with anyone you hire.
If your joints are starting to show their age, tell us about your wall and I'll come out and give you a straight answer on what it needs.
Repointing older brick and chimneys in Richmond
A lot of the pointing we do in Richmond is on older brick, and some older buildings come with extra rules. Under a City of Richmond policy from 2010, an unreinforced masonry building needs a seismic upgrade to strengthen it against earthquakes in three cases: obvious structural failure, a change to a more restrictive use, or remodeling that alters its structure. A licensed architect or registered engineer designs that upgrade, so if your wall shows real structural trouble or you're planning a remodel along with the pointing, tell me early. If your building is historic or might be, the city's Historic Preservation Commission decides on major alterations, and when we're not sure what the city wants, we ask before we start instead of guessing.
The dust collection I mentioned isn't just good manners on a tight lot, since a California rule calls for a shroud and a dust collection system on handheld grinders used to cut out mortar. We see the same older, softer brick on jobs in El Cerrito and Berkeley, and we bring the same care there.
Questions about brick pointing in Richmond
How do I know if my brick needs repointing?
Your brick needs repointing when the mortar is worn back more than 1/4 inch from the face of the brick, crumbles, has gaps, or shows hairline cracks or cracks between the brick and the mortar. Any one of those is a good reason to have the joints looked at, even if the wall looks fine from the street. If you're seeing them, give us a call at (510) 369-4799.
Should new mortar be stronger than the old mortar in my brick wall?
No, new mortar should be no stronger than the mortar already in the wall, because harder mortar puts stress on old brick and makes it break down. National guidance, written mostly for historic masonry, says Type O mortar is often used on older brickwork and Type N may suit newer brick, and that new mortar should match the old in color and texture, with the right sand doing most of the color matching. Ask any mason what mix they plan to use and why, and we'll tell you ours at the estimate.
How long does brick repointing last?
Mortar joints typically last more than 25 years, depending on how exposed the wall is to weather and what mortar was used, while the bricks themselves may last more than 100 years. That means a brick wall usually needs its joints redone now and then over its life, not new brick. Mortar that suits the wall is part of what decides where yours lands.
How much does brick pointing cost in Richmond, CA?
I price each pointing job after seeing the wall, because the cost comes down to how much of the wall needs its joints cut out and how deep the wear goes. Spot work on a few patches costs far less than a full face, a two-story wall or a chimney adds ladder or scaffold time, and soft brick that needs hand work takes longer than sound brick. Your written estimate gives you the number for your own wall.
Does a mason need a license to repoint brick in California?
Usually yes, because California requires a current, valid license from the Contractors State License Board for anyone who uses employees or contracts for work of $1,000 or more in combined labor and materials. It's worth checking before anyone starts cutting into your walls.
What is the best way to remove old mortar from soft brick?
On historic soft brick, hand chisels are usually the safest way, since national preservation guidance says they take more labor but pose the least risk of damage and give the best result. Power grinders are more common, and in unskilled hands they can be disastrous for soft brick, so the person holding the tool matters as much as the tool. That's why we work the way I described above, hand tools first on old brick.
Related services for chimneys and foundations
Chimney repair
When the bricks near the top of a chimney work loose or its cap cracks, fresh mortar alone won't fix it, so we check the whole stack.
Foundation repair
Cracks that step through brick or keep reopening after they're filled usually mean the ground or footing is moving, and that needs fixing before any joints get repointed.
Service areas for brick pointing near Richmond
Stonework Richmond Concrete and Masonry is based in Richmond, California, and we point brick across the cities around it, including San Pablo and Albany. Twelve cities have their own page here, and if yours isn't on the list, just ask.
Richmond, CA
Get your brick joints looked at
Send a few photos of the worn joints along with the building's age and whether it's historic, and I'll come out knowing what to look for.