"Repair exterior wall" or "building in disrepair"
The mortar and brick on your outside wall have gone far enough that the City no longer considers the building maintained. This is the classic Chicago masonry citation, and the wording is broad on purpose.
- Do I need a permit?
- This may need a permit, depending on scope. We will tell you which.
- Who actually does it?
- Our own crews. This is work we self-perform, so the schedule is ours to keep.
- Am I unusual?
- Not at all. This is one of the items we are called out for most, and it is rarely the only thing on the notice.
What the inspector was looking at
Mortar joints washed out and open. Brick spalled or missing. Sections of wall bulging or displaced. Cracking that steps its way along the joints.
What happens if you leave it
Open joints let water into the wall, and Chicago winters turn that water into more broken brick every single year. The repair only gets larger, and the citation stays open the whole time.
How we get it closed
- 1We survey the full elevation, because the inspector can see the whole wall and so can the next one
- 2Failed joints ground out to proper depth and repointed with mortar matched to yours
- 3Spalled and missing brick cut out and replaced with matching units
- 4Sealed and detailed so the wall sheds water and you are not back here in three years
Before you start worrying about the cost
This does not usually mean the whole building. Most walls need a defined area addressed properly, and we will show you where that line falls before we quote it.
This is almost never the only item
Chicago inspectors write up everything they can see in one visit. Fixing this and leaving the rest means the case stays open and you go to the hearing anyway. We price and clear the whole notice: our own crews on nearly all of it, licensed partners on the plumbing, heating and electrical items, and nothing left dangling for you to chase.
See how the whole thing worksUsually on the same notice
If you see any of these on yours too, that is the normal pattern rather than bad luck. They tend to share a cause.
The wall above your roof line made solid again, so nothing is loose over the sidewalk and water stops entering the top of the building.
Rusting steel above your windows replaced before it lifts the brick any further. This one gets worse and more expensive every year you wait.
Cited for tuckpointing? Let us take it from here.
A quick call, then we come out and price every item on the notice in person. Free, and you are under no obligation to use us.
Licensed and insured. A person answers, Monday to Saturday.