Brick pointing in Fayetteville NC - tight mortar joints that keep water out of your wall
Mortar crumbling, sandy or pulling away from your brick? We rake out the bad joints and refill them with mortar that suits your wall.
Does your brick need pointing, and what does the job involve?
Brick pointing in Fayetteville, NC means cutting the worn mortar out of the joints between your bricks and packing them with fresh mortar, and it's one of the best ways to keep water out of a brick wall. J&D Fayetteville Concrete and Masonry is based in Fayetteville and does this work across the cities around it.
Most folks call us when the joints look sandy, a crack has opened under a window, or water's getting in around the chimney, which often ties in with chimney repair. The price mostly comes down to how many joints need cutting out, how deep the wear goes, how high we have to work and how closely the new mortar has to match the old, and the schedule turns on the size of the wall, the weather and whether the house needs city review first. You'll get your own figure when I come out and see the wall. Permits in the city go through Fayetteville's Building Plan Review & Inspections office, which needs a licensed contractor to sign the application, so if your job needs one we file it and sign as your contractor, and if it isn't clear, we check with that office before we start.
How do you know your brick joints need pointing?
Most pointing calls start with something a homeowner notices while washing a wall or cleaning gutters. Here's what to look for, and what each one usually tells me about the mortar.
Mortar that rubs off as sand under your thumb has usually gone soft and lost its grip on the brick.
Joints sunk back from the face of the brick hold water instead of shedding it, so the wear speeds up.
Thin hairline cracks running through the mortar let rain soak in every time a storm blows against that wall.
A gap you can see between a brick's edge and its mortar means the bond between them has let go.
Holes or empty pockets in the joints, often near gutters and downspouts, show where water has washed mortar out.
Cracks that stair-step across a wall can mean settling underneath, which is a foundation repair question first.
When joints are open or cracking, call rather than wait, because water keeps working its way into the wall every time it rains.
What happens after you call us about brick pointing?
Here's how a pointing job runs with us, from your first call to the last of the mortar dust swept up. I come out for the estimate and I'm on the wall with our crew.
Call or send a message
Call (910) 302-3425 or use the form on this page, and we'll set a time for me to come out. We keep long hours, evenings and weekends included, so it's easy to find a time that suits you.
I look at the wall with you
I walk the joints with you, show you where the mortar is failing and answer whatever you want to ask. Then you get an estimate for your wall, with your price and the work it covers, so you know the number before anything starts.
Our crew does the work
If you go ahead, we take care of any permit the job needs, and I'm on site with our crew cutting out the old mortar and packing in the new. It's dusty, noisy work, so we cover plants and windows and keep you posted as we go.
Cleanup and a final look
We stay until the joints are finished and the site is cleaned up. Then we look it over together so you can see the work before we leave.
Get a free estimate for your brick pointing
Send the form and we'll get back to you within one business day to set up a visit. I'll come look at the wall with you, and the estimate is free with no pressure to book.
- Call
- (910) 302-3425
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 8 AM–10 PM, Sat–Sun: 6 AM–9 PM
Mortar, tools and how we match your wall
The mortar is the big choice on a pointing job. The new mortar goes in no harder than what's already in your wall, because a mix that's stronger than the old one stresses the spot where brick meets mortar and can damage brick in a way nobody can repair. So I look at the old joints first and mix to suit them, matching color and texture as closely as we can.
Getting the old mortar out is the slow part. Preservation guidance for old buildings says hand chisels and mash hammers take more labor but usually do the least damage, while power saws and grinders are more common and, in unskilled hands, can ruin older brick, soft brick most of all. That's why the person holding the tool matters as much as the mortar.
We also don't redo joints that are still sound. Original joints in good shape are better than repointed ones, and since this work is so labor-heavy, finding the bad joints first keeps the job and your bill to what the wall actually needs. On some houses that's one wall or a chimney face, and on others it's the whole house.
Brick pointing questions from Fayetteville homeowners
How do I know if my brick needs repointing?
Your brick needs repointing when the mortar has worn back more than ¼ inch from the face, or when it's crumbling, has holes or hairline cracks, or has pulled away from the brick. Any one of those lets water into the wall, and that's what pointing fixes. Send a photo or give us a call, and I'll come take a look.
How long does mortar last on a brick house?
Mortar lasts roughly 25 to 50 years, while the brick itself lasts about 100 years or more. That's why the joints wear out well before the brick does, and why pointing is normal upkeep on an older house rather than a sign something's badly wrong. On our end, it's satisfaction guaranteed on every job.
How much does brick pointing cost in Fayetteville?
There's no one price, because a few loose joints around a chimney and a whole house of worn mortar are very different jobs, so your number comes from me looking at your wall. One cost guide says spring and fall are ideal for mortar curing, and that emergency work in winter or extreme heat will likely cost more. If your joints are wearing but not leaking yet, planning ahead can help.
How do I choose a mason for brick repointing?
Pick someone with real repointing experience, because a mason who lays fine new brick isn't always good at this kind of repair. Ask to see pointing they've done, and ask how they'll figure out what made the mortar fail, since a good job looks for the cause before the fix. We're fully licensed and insured, and repair on older brick is the work we're best known for.
Do I need approval to repoint a house in a Fayetteville historic district?
If your house is in one of the city's designated historic districts or is a landmark, plan on review before exterior work like repointing, because the city reviews all building activity affecting the outside of buildings there. The city's Historic Resources Commission approves those exterior changes through a Certificate of Appropriateness. Call the city's Planning Department at (910) 433-1612 to check your house, and tell us what they say so we can plan around it.
How long does brick pointing take?
Longer than most folks expect, since every joint gets cut out and packed by hand and the time grows with how much wall needs work. Preservation guidance for old buildings calls it precise, time-consuming and noisy work, and says scaffolding may stay up on the face of the building for a while. I'll tell you what to expect for your house when I come out.
Other masonry work that often goes with pointing
Foundation repair
If cracks run in a stair-step line or keep reopening after they're filled, the ground under the house may be moving, and that needs fixing before any pointing.
Chimney repair
Chimneys take the worst weather on a house, so worn joints up there often come with a cracked crown or leaks worth fixing together.
Send us photos of your worn joints
Call (910) 302-3425 or use the form, and if your house sits in a historic district or is a landmark, tell us up front so we can plan around the city's review.
Mon–Fri: 8 AM–10 PM, Sat–Sun: 6 AM–9 PM