What is repointing and when does a wall need it?

Repointing is grinding out failed mortar joints and refilling them with fresh mortar. A wall needs it when the joints are receding, crumbling to sand under a key, or letting water through. Mortar is designed to be the sacrificial element — repointing on time is what stops the far more expensive job of replacing the brick itself.

Can you match my existing mortar and brick?

Yes, and it matters more than most people expect. We match mortar colour and joint profile, and source replacement brick as close as possible to the original. On older Ottawa homes we also match mortar hardness — modern high-cement mortar in a soft historic wall will destroy the brick around it.

How do I know if my chimney needs rebuilding or just repair?

If the damage is confined to surface mortar and a few spalled bricks, repointing and replacement is usually enough. If the stack is leaning, the top courses have shifted, or the brick is failing through its depth, it needs rebuilding from a sound course down. We inspect before quoting and show you what we are seeing.

Do you work on commercial buildings?

Yes. We carry WSIB coverage and liability insurance and have completed commercial masonry and foundation work across Ottawa, including scaffolded multi-storey jobs and work on occupied premises.

Masonry & Chimney Repair Ottawa | Repointing & Brick

Mortar is designed to fail before the brick does. That is the point of it — the joints take the movement and the weather so the masonry itself survives. When those joints start receding, crumbling or letting water through, repointing on time is what keeps the repair from becoming a rebuild.

Repointing

We grind out the failed mortar to a proper depth, clean the joints, and refill with mortar matched to the colour, texture and profile of the original. On older Ottawa homes we also match the hardness — a modern high-cement mortar packed into a soft historic brick wall traps moisture and destroys the brick faces around it. Matching matters, and it is the part cheap quotes skip.

Brick, block and window sills

Individual spalled or cracked bricks replaced without disturbing the wall around them, with replacements sourced as close to the original as we can get. Window sills repaired or rebuilt where frost and water have broken them down — a failed sill sheds water straight into the wall below it, so it is rarely the only damage for long.

Chimneys

Repointing, partial rebuilds from a sound course, full rebuilds, and capping. Chimneys take more weather than any other masonry on the building because they are exposed on every side, and they are the element most often left until water is coming in. We work scaffolded, protect the roof and the ground below, and clear the site properly when we finish.