Masonry Contractor in Sun Village, CA - Older Brick and Block Fixed at the Cause

LA County Public Works issues them, because Sun Village is unincorporated and the County serves it rather than a city. The County's Service Locator shows which office handles your street address or parcel number, and when the County handles it you'll get the local Building and Safety office's contact info. When your job needs a permit, we apply for it as your contractor and set up the inspections.

A retaining wall that holds back no more than 4 feet, measured from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall, is on the County's list of work that doesn't need a building permit, unless it carries extra weight above it, such as a driveway. Walks and driveways are on that list too when they sit no more than 30 inches above the ground, over no basement or room below, and aren't part of an accessible route. Zoning rules and separate permits can still apply, so I check with the County for your address before we start.

A contractor needs a state license when the job needs a building permit, uses any extra workers, or costs $1,000 or more in labor and materials together. The Contractors State License Board also requires that license before a contractor gives you a bid. We're licensed and fully insured, and I'm glad to answer any questions about it on the visit.

Your cost comes from the size of the job, the brick, block or stone we're matching, how deep the damage runs once old patches come out, and whether the County needs a permit and inspections. Repointing a few cracked joints costs far less than rebuilding a wall that's leaning off its footing, and fixing the cause once usually costs less than patching the same spot twice. I write the estimate on site so you see each part of the price before you decide.

The County asks for the first inspection within 12 months of getting the permit, then follow-up inspections every 6 months to keep it active. We book those inspections as the work reaches each stage, so you don't have to keep track of the dates.

The best fix is to rake the worn mortar out to sound material and repoint with a mortar that's no harder than the brick, instead of smearing new mortar over the top. A smear job looks fine for a while, but it traps the loose mortar underneath and usually fails along the same joints. On older houses here I also look for what's wearing the mortar out, like a leak or a gutter dumping on the wall, so the new joints last.