Brick pointing in Lincoln NE - solid joints that keep water out and brick intact
Crumbling or cracked mortar between your bricks lets water in. We clear out the worn joints and refill them with mortar that suits your brick.
- Licensed and insured.
- Free in-person estimates.
- We reply within 1 business day.
Is it time to repoint the brick on your Lincoln house?
Brick pointing, also called repointing or tuckpointing, means taking the worn mortar out of the joints between your bricks and packing new mortar in its place. On a Lincoln house, it keeps water out of a wall whose bricks will outlast their mortar many times over.
Most calls start with something small, like sand on a windowsill, joints that look sunken, or a dark patch on the brick after a rain. Once the joints open up, water gets into the wall, and that's when bricks start to loosen and crack. The price mostly comes down to how much wall needs work, how deep the joints have worn, how high we have to work and how carefully the old mortar has to come out, since hand work on soft brick goes slower. The schedule turns on those same things, and after I've looked at your wall, the written estimate gives you the figure for your house.
How we do brick pointing on your house
We start by finding out why the joints failed, because new mortar under a leaking gutter or beside a downspout that dumps on the wall will wear out the same way. Then the old mortar comes out, and how it comes out matters as much as what goes in. On soft or older brick we take it out by hand with chisels instead of cutting with a saw, because a saw in a thin joint tends to chip the brick edges and cut too far into the short vertical joints. It's slower, but your brick keeps its edges. New mortar has to be as strong as the old or weaker, because harder mortar pushes the stress into the brick, and a brick face that breaks away can't be repaired, so we pick the mix to suit your brick. We pack the joints, shape them to match the rest of the wall and clean the brick face before we leave.
Sometimes the joints are only the part you can see. If cracks climb the wall in a stair-step line or a wall has started to lean, the trouble may be in the foundation, and foundation repair comes before any pointing. Loose mortar up on a chimney is usually more than a pointing job, so we handle it as chimney repair, where the top of the chimney and the seal at the roof get checked too.
Repointing just the walls that need it
This suits a house where the damage sits in one place, like under a bad gutter or along the side that takes the weather. If a smaller job will fix it, that's what I'll tell you, because there's no sense paying to redo sound joints.
Repointing a whole wall or house
This makes sense when the joints are worn across the whole wall, not just in patches. Doing it all at once means the color and texture of the joints match from corner to corner.
If mortar is falling out in chunks or a brick has worked loose, call (402) 202-7624 instead of waiting, because open joints keep taking in water.
What happens when you call us about brick pointing in Lincoln?
Here's how a pointing job runs with us, from your first call to the last walk around the wall. I'm the one you'll meet at the estimate, and I'm on the job with our crew.
Call or send the form
Call (402) 202-7624 or fill out the form, and tell us which walls are giving you trouble. We'll set a time for me to come out.
I look at the wall
I come out myself and look at the damage and what's causing it, whether that's water coming off the roof or joints worn out with age. Then I walk you through what I'd do and why.
You get a written estimate
You get the price in writing for the work I walked you through, so you can see the plan and the cost together before you decide anything.
We do the work and walk it
Our own small crew of masons does the job, with me on site. When the joints are done and the brick is cleaned up, I walk the finished wall with you before we call it done.
Get a free on-site estimate for your brick joints
We reply within one business day to set a time. I come out, look at your joints and what's wearing them down, and you get a written estimate with no obligation to book.
(402) 202-7624Brick pointing on older and landmark homes in Lincoln
If your house is an individual Lincoln landmark or sits in a local landmark district, the city requires exterior changes to follow its design standards. Homes listed on the National Register of Historic Places aren't held to those design guidelines unless federal money is involved. If you're not sure where your house falls, or you have project plans to send in for review, the city's preservation office takes questions at preservation@lincoln.ne.gov or (402) 441-6377.
We're based in Lincoln and work in the cities around it, and much of the brick we repoint is on older homes where the mortar and the brick are both on the soft side. We see the same on jobs in Seward and Crete, so taking mortar out by hand is a regular part of how we work.
Brick pointing questions we hear in Lincoln
How do I know if my brick needs repointing?
Your brick needs repointing when the mortar has worn more than ¼ inch back into the joint, or when it's crumbling, has gaps, or shows hairline cracks or cracks where brick meets mortar. Scrape a few joints with a key on the side of the house that takes the most weather. If you find those signs, it's worth getting an estimate.
How much does brick repointing cost in Lincoln, NE?
Repointing brick across the US usually costs about $3 to $25 per square foot of wall, for taking out the old mortar and putting in new. Walls tall enough to need scaffolding cost more per square foot than lower ones. Your own figure comes from the written estimate after I've seen the wall.
How long does new mortar last after repointing?
Mortar joints typically last more than 25 years, depending on how much weather the wall takes and which mortar was used. Bricks can last more than 100 years, so on most brick houses repointing is regular upkeep you'll come back to, not a one-time fix.
What is the best mortar for repointing old brick?
The best mortar depends on how old the wall is and what's already in it. The Brick Industry Association generally recommends Type N for modern brickwork and saves the weakest, Type K, for historic masonry, so ask any crew which type they plan to use and why.
How do I choose a contractor for brick repointing?
Choose a crew with real repointing experience, because the Brick Industry Association points out that an excellent mason may not be qualified for repointing. Ask how they'll get the old mortar out, for the reasons above. Nebraska requires contractors to register with the state Department of Labor, though the department says registration doesn't ensure quality. We're licensed and insured, and it's satisfaction guaranteed on every job.
Can I repoint my own brick house in Nebraska?
Yes, Nebraska's contractor registration law doesn't count someone working on their own property as a contractor, so you don't need to register to repoint your own house. The hard part is getting the old mortar out, since power tools in unskilled hands can do serious damage to soft, older brick.
Related masonry work for brick homes
If the house itself has shifted, new mortar will crack along the same line, so settling, bowing or a leaking basement wall gets fixed first.
A chimney takes weather on every side, so its joints often go first, and a leak there can show up as a stain on your ceiling.
Have your brick joints looked at
Call (402) 202-7624 or use the form, and send a few photos of the worst joints along with the wall's rough size and height so I come out ready.