Masonry restoration in Merced CA - brick and stone repaired so the wall can dry

Repointing is cutting the worn mortar out of the joints in a brick or stone wall and replacing it with new mortar. It's also called pointing, and a lot of people say tuckpointing, which isn't quite accurate but gets used for the same job. When the joints are what's failing, that's often the main part of a restoration.

Start with the gentlest method that works, because national guidance for historic masonry recommends very low water pressure, even a garden hose, and stepping up to slightly higher pressure only as needed. Harsh blasting or strong chemicals can strip the brick's fireskin, its hard fired outer surface, and once that's gone the brick weathers faster and holds up less well.

Cracks that run through the brickwork itself are often structural, and they usually need a proper look at the cause before anyone picks a repair, so the fix matches whatever is moving the wall. That matters more on older unreinforced brick buildings in Merced, since across California most of those buildings have features that can put lives at risk in an earthquake. Those include unbraced parapets, which are the short walls that rise above a roof, along with walls and roofs that aren't tied together well and walls that were poorly built. If I see a crack like that on your building, I'll tell you it needs a closer look instead of guessing.

In California, masonry work has its own license class from the state licensing board, covering brick and other baked clay products, block, and natural and manufactured stone. The same class covers masonry walls and fences, brick veneer and paving, plus clear waterproofing, cleaning and caulking done as part of masonry work, so it's worth checking the license of whoever you hire.

Your cost comes from how much wall needs work and what it needs, and I put that in a written estimate after I've seen it. Doing only the worn joints keeps it down, while cleaning, replacing damaged brick and working high on a chimney push it up. A brick that's hard to match can add to it too.

Usually not, because masonry industry guidance advises against coatings that limit how much moisture vapor passes through brick, since they keep the wall from drying. Water that can't get out stays in the brick and the joints, which is the damage restoration is meant to stop. If one wall keeps getting soaked, we'd rather find and fix where the water's coming from.