Metro Detroit’s Masonry Q&A Hub

Several bricks on the wall near my spigot in my backyard are cracked. Can those bricks be replaced without damaging the spigot?

Answer

Yes they can. The part of a brick wall near a spigot tends get wet more often usualy due to a leak in the spigot or the hose. Imagine when you turn on your hose and some water sprays on the bricks where the hose attaches to the spigot. That part of the wall stays damp. So yes we can replace the bricks without damaging the spigot but we suggest you figure out if the hose is leaking near the spigot when you turn it on & figure out how to stop that from happening. Usually a rubber washer that goes inside the hose attachment does the trick.

A group of bricks along the bottom of my house is chipping and breaking apart. Is this a large project?

Answer

From your description I’d say no. A larger project would be if the entire wall was bowing or pulling away from the wall. But you said a group of bricks along the bottom of your house are chipping & breaking apart. Here’s why you’re description makes sense. The bricks along the bottom of your house are the ones that get hammered by moisture sitting against the wall and then freezing. Think snow piled near that area in the winter or maybe you have plants, mulch or soil covering the bricks where it’s more difficult for moisture to escape. What you’ll often see is the brick faces pop or flake off (which is called spalling). That’s from bricks getting soaked by water, freezing, thawing & eventually breaking apart. If the damage is limited to a group like you described then just rebuilding that section is normal. Something to keep in mind is after the repair is done try to do what you can you keep that area from constant moisture being trapped there again. Remove mulch or soil from being piled high against the brick wall or that same spot. Or if when you shovel snow don’t pile the snow against the wall or you will end up needing to repair the wall again sooner than later.