The mortar between bricks on my porch is deteriorating. Can I put off getting it repaired until next spring or is that a bad idea?
Answer
You can, but if the mortar is already deteriorating, going through another Michigan winter can make it worse. The concern isn’t just the missing mortar—it’s water getting into those openings and then freezing and expanding. That can turn a relatively simple tuckpointing repair into damaged or loose bricks that also need replacement. If it’s only minor surface wear, waiting may not cause a major problem, but we’d want to see it before telling you that. Having it looked at now will give you a better idea whether it should be handled before winter or can safely wait until spring.
