Brick repointing in Chestnut Hill, PA

Wissahickon schist is the defining material here: large stone singles, twins and stone rows from the 1880s through the 1930s, many of them in a designated historic district, on substantial lots.

Lime-mortar stone pointing on large elevations, stone chimney rebuilds, garden and retaining walls, and removing hard cement pointing from earlier repairs.

A mason cuts or grinds the old mortar back to sound material, usually three quarters of an inch deep, brushes and wets the joint, then packs new mortar in and tools it to match the original profile. The mortar has to be softer than the brick. On a Philadelphia rowhome built before about 1930 that means a lime-rich mix, not the hard grey Portland cement a general contractor reaches for, because cement is stronger than the brick around it and pushes the brick faces off instead of giving way.

• Mortar you can rake out with a screwdriver or a key
• Sand or grit collecting on the sill or the sidewalk below a wall
• Open gaps where the joint has washed out completely
• White powdery marks on the brick, which is salt carried out by water moving through the wall
• Damp patches or stains on the inside of an exterior wall
• A hard grey patch from an old repair that has cracked away from the brick

• Photographs of the joints close up, and of the whole wall from across the street
• Which elevations need work, and how high the highest joint is
• Roughly how many square feet of wall are involved
• Whether anyone has pointed it before, and with what
• Whether water is already getting inside

Describe the job once: the service, your Chestnut Hill ZIP code, a few words, and photographs if you have them. Mortarook writes your description back in trade language for you to check, then matches you with a maximum of three local masonry contractors whose registered services and service area cover ZIP code 19118.

Every Verified Pro has had their Pennsylvania home improvement contractor registration checked against the Attorney General’s public registry and has a certificate of insurance on file. Your phone number and address are seen only by the pros who accept your project. There is never a fourth contractor, and we do not sell your information.

Mortarook is new in Chestnut Hill. If fewer than three verified masons cover your ZIP code for this work, we tell you that plainly with a date rather than leaving you waiting.