The University of Virginia Chapel was swathed in scaffolding for the new year. Facilities Management’s historic masons, specializing in historic preservation, have been working on repointing the ...

Brick is some seriously durable stuff—clay bricks commonly endure for a century or longer, and there are plenty of examples of brick structures that are much older than that. If you have a brick home ...

Repointing brickwork is usually required at least once or twice per century. Wear, weather and structural stresses cause the mortar between bricks to deteriorate over the decades, until you’re left ...

Dear James: We have a brick house and the mortar between the bricks has fallen out in spots. It looks terrible. What is the best method to repair this and how can I get new mortar to look like the old ...

We've all seen it: The brick or stone wall where the mortar is all powdery, cracked or non-existent. "Mortar can disintegrate over time because of weather as a result of the freeze-thaw cycles. The ...

Last week, I fielded no fewer than five phone calls from homeowner with the same grim news. They found it nearly impossible to get quotes from contractors to do fairly simple repairs. Each caller’s ...

There are two basic types of brick: place bricks are used on internal walls and the inner faces of external walls while stock bricks, which are of better quality, are used for facing work. Most bricks ...

A reader recently emailed me, seeking advice on whether to take on a do-it-yourself repair of the mortar around her brick masonry. She regularly performs hands-on maintenance around her home, she said ...

Dear James: We have a brick house and the mortar between the bricks has fallen out in spots. It looks terrible. What is the best method to repair this and how can I get new mortar to look like the old ...