Masonry FAQ — Lexington, KY

Access and preparation drive it more than the visible stonework does — the same chimney repair costs very differently at ten feet and at thirty. See our cost guide; assessments are free.

Mineral salts left behind as water moves through masonry and evaporates at the surface. It is a symptom rather than the problem — it tells you water is moving through the wall, and the useful response is to find out where from.

Spalling, caused by moisture in the brick freezing and expanding. Common causes are hard mortar in a soft wall, a sealed surface trapping water, or de-icing salt on steps.

You can, and it is essentially permanent — removing paint from brick is difficult and risks the face. Paint also reduces the wall’s ability to breathe, which matters a great deal on older masonry.

Generally no, especially on older brick. Sealers trap moisture inside the wall. Fix where water is getting in instead.

Several decades with an appropriate mortar. Considerably less, plus brick damage, with the wrong one.

As closely as practical. On weathered century-old masonry an exact match is not realistic, and salvaged period brick usually beats anything new.

Frequently a rusting steel lintel expanding and lifting the masonry above it. It progresses and is worth addressing early.

Please do not. Mortar traps water in a wall built to drain, and the repaired section pushes out within a few winters. See dry stone fence restoration.

Fine vertical hairlines usually are not. Horizontal cracks, stepped diagonal cracking, bowing, or any crack that is widening warrant a look. See foundation masonry repair.