Brick Repair & Restoration in Eau Claire, WI
Spalled faces, stair-step cracks, loose steps and bulging sections. We replace the brick that has failed, rebuild what has let go, and leave the sound brick alone.
Serving Eau Claire, Altoona, Chippewa Falls, Lake Hallie, Menomonie, Fall Creek and the surrounding Chippewa Valley
Brick Repair for Eau Claire Homes and Buildings
Brick repair means working on the brick itself: taking out units that have spalled, cracked or come loose and laying matching brick back in.
Eau Claire has brick from every era. The Water Street Historic District's brick storefronts date from 1882 to 1885, the Third Ward's National Register listing covers homes from 1870 to 1910, and plenty of newer subdivisions have brick on a front wall, a stoop or a mailbox. Old brick is usually a solid wall two or three brick thick. Newer brick is a single layer of veneer tied to a wood frame with an air space behind it. They fail differently, so the first thing we work out is which one you have.
- Brick replacement. Spalled, cracked or broken brick cut out one at a time and matching brick laid back in. If six brick are bad, six brick get replaced.
- Section rebuilds. A bulging panel under a window, a loose wall top or a corner that has let go comes down to sound masonry and is relaid plumb, tied back to the wall behind it.
- Lintels and sills. Rusting steel over a window jacks the brick above it and cracks the corners. Sloped brick sills take water on their top face and open up first.
- Brick and mortar repair together. New brick in old joints looks patched. We repoint around the repair so it reads as one wall. Joint-only work is on the tuckpointing and repointing page.
Spalling Brick: Why Faces Pop Off After Wisconsin Winters
A brick is fired hard on the outside and stays softer inside. Spalling is that hard face breaking away. It takes two things: water inside the brick and a freeze. Eau Claire supplies the second one every year, so the repair is always about the first. Four things put water where it should not be.
- Water from above. A cracked chimney crown, a missing cap, an overflowing gutter or a flat sill soaks the brick below it all fall. Spalling in a stripe under one of these is the giveaway.
- Sealers and paint. A film on the face stops rain getting in and also stops the wall drying out. Moisture from inside the house and from the ground collects behind the coating and freezes there.
- Mortar harder than the brick. Old soft brick repointed with modern portland cement mortar cannot breathe through its joints any more, so it dries through its faces, and the edges of each brick break up first.
- De-icing salt. Salt dissolves into meltwater, soaks into steps and the bottom courses, and crystallizes inside the brick as it dries. That pressure does the same damage ice does.
So before any brick is replaced we find the source and fix it, or the new brick spall too. On a chimney that is usually the crown or flashing, covered on our chimney crown, cap and flashing repair page.
Cracked Brick Walls: Stair-Step Cracks, Settlement and When to Call an Engineer
A crack is the wall telling you something moved. Repairing a cracked brick wall is easy. Knowing whether it has stopped moving is the part that matters, and the shape of the crack says a lot.
| What you see | What it usually means | Who should look first |
|---|---|---|
| Hairline crack through one or two brick | Shrinkage or an old one-time bump. Common and usually stable. | A mason. Replace the brick or leave it and watch it. |
| Stair-step crack up the joints from a window or door corner | A lintel rusting and lifting, or the opening settling a little. | A mason, if the crack is the same width top to bottom and is not growing. |
| Stair-step crack that is wider at the top than the bottom | One end of the footing is dropping. | A structural engineer first. |
| Long vertical crack near a corner or mid-wall | Brick growing and shrinking with the seasons and no joint built in to absorb it. | A mason. Usually cut in a movement joint and replace the broken brick. |
| Wall face bulging or leaning out | Ties rusted through or water behind the veneer. | A mason for veneer. An engineer if the wall is holding up the house. |
A guide to reading cracks, not a diagnosis. Width, direction and whether it is changing all matter.
Brick Steps, Stoops, Mailboxes and Patio Repair
Brick steps and stoops
The city asks for sidewalks to be cleared within 24 hours of a snowfall, and most front steps get the same shovel-and-salt treatment all winter. Treads loosen first, then the brick on the outer corners. If the base under the steps is sound we lift the loose brick, clean them and relay them on fresh mortar, replacing the ones that have spalled. If the stoop has sunk or pulled away from the house, the base has failed and relaying brick on top of it is wasted money. We will tell you that at the estimate. Sand for traction is easier on brick than rock salt.
Brick mailbox repair
A brick mailbox is a small freestanding pier with a cap. Caps crack and let water down the core, and plow-thrown snow or a bumper does the rest. Loose top courses and caps can be rebuilt in place. A pier that leans or has sheared at the bottom comes down and goes back up on a sound footing.
Brick patios and walks
We reset brick that has heaved or sunk, replace broken ones and repoint mortared joints. Paving brick is a denser brick than wall brick, so swapping in leftover house brick is how a patio repair fails in two winters. We don't install new paver patios or pour concrete.
Text a Photo of the Brick and Get a Straight Answer
One photo from across the yard and one from arm's length is enough to tell a few bad brick from a wall that needs opening up. If it can wait until spring, or it is a gutter problem and not a brick problem, we will say so.
Matching Replacement Brick on Older Eau Claire Houses
A repair that works but looks like a patch still bothers people, and on a house in Randall Park or the Third Ward it should. Matching goes in this order.
- Size. Older brick was made to the local yard's own dimensions, not today's modular size. A modern brick in an 1890s wall throws the coursing off within a few rows. Size is the one thing that cannot be faked.
- Texture. Smooth, sand-faced, wire-cut and tumbled brick catch light differently. From the street, texture shows more than color.
- Color and range. Old walls are rarely one color. We pull a blend that covers the range in the wall and scatter it so there is no block of new brick.
- Mortar. Joint width, joint profile and sand color finish the match. On pre-war brick that also means a softer mortar than the bagged mix at the lumberyard.
Where the brick comes from depends on the wall. Reclaimed brick from the same era is the best match for old solid walls, and sometimes the best source is the house itself: sound brick from a back wall or a chimney coming down can move to the front. For newer homes the manufacturer may still make the brick, or something near it. When no good match exists we say so before starting, and you decide whether a near match on a side wall is acceptable.
Brick Restoration and Cleaning
Brick restoration is the slower end of this trade: bringing an old wall back without making it look new. It is replacement brick, repointing and cleaning done together and kept in proportion.
Cleaning does the most harm when it is rushed. The National Park Service's preservation guidance says to clean by the gentlest means possible and that abrasive methods are generally not appropriate for historic masonry. Sandblasting strips the fired face off brick, and so does a pressure washer held too close. The same guidance starts water washing at 100 psi or less and goes no higher than about 300 to 400 psi. We start with water and a bristle brush, test any cleaner on a hidden patch, and don't wash walls in fall, because a soaked wall can take more than a week to dry and frost will not wait.
Efflorescence, the white powder that blooms on brick, is salt left behind as water evaporates. It brushes off dry. If it keeps coming back, the wall is still getting wet somewhere, and that is the thing to fix.
Sealers are rarely the answer. A breathable water repellent has a place on a few hard to protect spots. A waterproof coating on brick traps moisture and sets up the spalling described above. If your house is a local landmark or in a local historic district, ask the city's Landmarks Commission before cleaning or painting brick.
Brick Repair Cost in Eau Claire
These are national figures from HomeAdvisor's brick repair cost guide. They are typical ranges, not quotes, and they are useful mainly for checking whether a bid is in a believable neighborhood.
| Job | Typical range | What moves it |
|---|---|---|
| Typical brick repair job | $804–$2,639 | What most homeowners spend, with an average of $1,718. A handful of brick at ground level sits under this. |
| Brick repair by area | $20–$40 per sq ft | Depends on the kind of damage and how sound the wall around it is. |
| Mortar repair | $10–$20 per sq ft | Joints only. Height and joint depth move it. |
| Cracked brick wall | $500–$1,000 | For the masonry. Fixing what caused the crack is a separate cost. |
| Spalling brick | $900–$20,000 | The widest range on the list: a few faces at one end, whole walls relaid at the other. |
| Brick steps | $300–$750 per step | A full brick porch is listed at $1,500–$3,000. |
| Brick mailbox | $500–$750 | Major repairs. Minor cracks run about half that, and a snapped-off pier that needs a new footing costs more. |
| Window lintel | $500–$700 | Per window. Wider openings need shoring while the lintel is out. |
Source: HomeAdvisor, “How Much Does Brick Repair Cost?” (updated June 17, 2026). National ranges, checked October 2026. The same guide lists bricklayers at $40 to $75 per hour.
What moves the price of a brick repair
Height comes first, because scaffolding can cost more than the masonry on a small second-story repair. Then the brick: a common modern brick is cheap, and a reclaimed match for an 1890s wall has to be hunted down. Then how far the damage runs once the first brick are out. We price what we can see and tell you where a wall might hold a surprise.
Brick Repair Questions From Eau Claire Homeowners
How much does brick repair cost in Eau Claire?
HomeAdvisor's national cost guide puts the average brick repair at $1,718, with most homeowners spending between $804 and $2,639, and lists masons at $20 to $40 per square foot. Those are national figures, not a quote. A dozen spalled brick beside a front door costs far less than a second-story section that needs scaffolding. We look at the wall and give you a written price.
Can spalled brick be patched instead of replaced?
Not in a way that lasts here. Patching compounds and mortar smeared over a spalled face come off within a few winters, because the soft core behind them keeps taking on water. The lasting repair is to cut the damaged brick out and lay a matching one in its place. If the spalling is shallow and the brick is sheltered, leaving it alone and fixing the water source is a fair option too.
Should I seal my brick to stop spalling?
Usually not. The National Park Service's guidance on historic masonry says that if a building is kept watertight and in good repair, water-repellent coatings should not be necessary, and that a coating should never go on a damp wall. Film-forming sealers and paint are worse: they stop the wall drying out. Fix the crown, cap, gutter, sill or joints that let the water in first.
Will the new brick match my old brick?
Close, and on most walls close enough that you have to look for it. An exact match is rare on brick more than a few decades old, because the clay, the kiln and the size have changed. We match size first, then texture, then color, and blend the new brick across the repair. New mortar starts lighter and darkens as it cures over the first weeks.
Do you repair brick mailboxes?
Yes. Most brick mailbox repairs are a cracked cap, loose top courses or a pier that has been hit and shifted. If the pier has snapped at the base or is leaning, it comes down and is rebuilt on a sound footing. Before rebuilding one at the street, check with your municipality about what is allowed in the right-of-way.
Do you repair brick patios and brick pavers?
We repair existing brick patios, walks and steps: resetting sunken or heaved brick, replacing broken ones and repointing mortared joints. We do not install new paver patios or pour concrete, so for a new patio from scratch you want a hardscape or concrete contractor.
Do you build new brick walls?
Our brick wall construction is mostly rebuilding: failed sections of house walls, porch piers, wing walls beside steps, mailbox piers and freestanding garden walls. We do not build retaining walls. If you have a new brick wall in mind, call and describe it, and we will tell you plainly whether it is ours to build.
What time of year can brick repair be done in Eau Claire?
Exterior work mostly runs from spring through fall. Wisconsin's dwelling code calls for cold-weather masonry procedures whenever the air temperature is below 40°F, which means heated enclosures and protected mortar. That is worth doing for an urgent repair and not for a few brick on a stoop, so late-season calls often go on the spring schedule.
Get a Free Brick Repair Estimate
Tell us where the brick is and what it is doing: faces popping off, a crack you have been watching, steps that rock underfoot. We look at it in person, work out where the water or movement is coming from, and send a written estimate.
- We look at the masonry in person, not from the truck window
- You get the scope and the price in writing
- If it can wait a season or needs a different trade, we say so
Related Masonry Repairs
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Tuckpointing
When the brick is sound and only the joints have worn back, repointing is the repair.
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Chimney Repair
Most spalled chimney brick starts with a cracked crown or failed flashing above it.
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Masonry Foundation Repair
Stair-step cracks in a brick wall often begin in the block or stone wall underneath.
Brick Coming Loose? Have It Looked at Before Winter Does More.
Call, text a photo, or send the form. More ways to reach us are on the contact page, and the full list of what we do is on the Eau Claire masonry contractor home page.