Crumbling mortar, cracked bricks or white bloom that keeps coming back? We find the cause and fix it so the repair matches the wall around it.
Brick repair in Aliso Viejo usually means repointing, where we clear worn mortar out of the joints and pack in fresh mortar, along with cutting out bricks that have cracked and setting new ones in their place.
Most calls start with mortar that crumbles when you rub it, a brick with a crack running through it, or white powder on a garden wall. The price comes down to how many joints and bricks need work, how hard your brick is to match and whether water has to be dealt with first. A wall or chimney over 8 feet tall needs scaffolding before we start, which adds setup time, and I put your own number in the estimate once I've seen the wall.
Brick repair often sits next to other work. We bring the same matching care to the brick edging along driveway pavers, and if a wall is leaning because it's holding back a slope, that's a job for retaining wall construction more than brick repair. I'll tell you which one you're looking at before you spend money on patching.
Call (949) 619-8220 or use the form, and tell us where the wall is and what you're noticing. We'll get back to you to set a time for me to come look.
I check the mortar, the bricks and where water might be getting in, and I answer your questions right there at the wall. Then I write your estimate, which tells you what needs doing now, what can wait and what it costs.
Before any work starts, we check what the city or your association needs, and we help with the paperwork. The city allows construction from 7am to 8pm on weekdays and 8am to 8pm on Saturdays, with none on Sundays or federal holidays, so we book your work inside those hours.
I work on the repair alongside our masons and helpers, and we clean up before we leave. Then we walk the finished wall together so you can look at every patch and ask about anything that doesn't look right to you.
Replacement brick has to match the old in more than color. It should also line up in strength, density, porosity and how much water it soaks up, because a brick that's too hard and dense sitting in a softer, more porous wall can make the wall around it fail early. So we look for brick that will behave like what's already in your wall, even when a closer color would be easier to find.
The mortar gets the same thought. Repointing typically starts by working out what the old mortar is made of, so the new mix suits your existing joints instead of fighting them. A joint that's harder than the brick beside it pushes the wear into the brick, and that's the opposite of what you're paying us to do.
What our brick repair covers:
Most walls I look at need repair, not replacement. If the bricks are sound and only the joints have worn, repointing puts the wall back in good shape and keeps the brick you already have. Rebuilding starts to make sense when a section has a lot of cracked bricks, has shifted, or keeps cracking in the same spot. At that point I'll also tell you if the cause needs an engineer before any mason touches it.
The biggest driver is how much of the wall is involved, counted in joints to repoint and bricks to replace. After that comes access, since a tall wall or chimney needs a scaffold, and how hard your brick is to match, because an older or unusual brick can take real searching. The way the old mortar comes out matters too, and so does any water problem behind the brick, since that gets fixed first.
I've run this business since 2023, and I still come out to every job myself. I look at the wall, write the estimate and then work on the repair alongside our masons and helpers, so the person who told you what's wrong is the same one making sure it gets fixed that way.
I'd rather take extra time explaining your wall than have you sign up for work it doesn't need. If something can wait, I'll say so, and if it needs an engineer or another trade, I'll say that too. We keep your yard clear, work the hours we agreed and leave the place clean. Satisfaction guaranteed.
Photos of the cracked brick or crumbling mortar, plus roughly how tall the wall is, help me come out knowing what to look for.
Tell us where the wall is and what you're seeing, and we'll reply within one business day to set up a free estimate at your place, with no obligation to book.
Cracked or damaged bricks are usually replaced rather than repaired in place. We cut the damaged brick out, clean the opening and set a new one matched to the wall around it. If several bricks keep cracking in one area, I'll look for what's causing it before we replace anything.
Bloom that keeps coming back usually means water is getting into the wall and staying there. A little white powder soon after new work is normal as fresh masonry dries, but bloom that returns after that early stretch points to water. We track down where it's getting in before we touch the brick, because cleaning or replacing brick first just means you'll see the bloom again.
Only on small jobs, because California's limit on work by someone without a contractor's license is $1,000. Even then, it only applies when the job needs no permit and that person has no one working for them on it. We're licensed and insured, so the size of your job doesn't change who's allowed to do it.
Your cost comes from the estimate I write after looking at your wall, because the same crack can be a small repointing job or the first sign of a bigger repair. The number moves with how many joints and bricks need work, how tall the wall is and how hard your brick is to match. Call (949) 619-8220 and I'll come take a look.
On older brick, raking the mortar out by hand with chisels and mash hammers is usually the gentlest way and gives the best result, though it takes more labor. That's the advice in guidance written for historic brick buildings, and power saws and grinders are still the most common method. If your wall is older, ask any mason which tools they plan to use, and I'll tell you which way we'd go on yours and why.
You do if the work rebuilds a destroyed or torn-down exterior in a different layout, style or color, because the AVCA guidelines call for committee approval before demolition and rebuilding. Requests go to your subassociation first, or straight to the AVCA committee if you don't have one. If your repair needs approval, we help you put the request together.
We're based in Aliso Viejo and do brick repair in Laguna Niguel, Mission Viejo and other cities nearby. Pick your area below, or call if yours isn't listed.
