Tag Archives: masonry

21 Dec

Getting Ahead Of The Spring Masonry Rush

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Getting Ahead of the Spring Masonry Rush

It’s the holidays here in Ontario and it’s a time to be with family, eat lots of food and try and regenerate before the new year arrives. The last thing you want to think about is repairing your home. However, there is a big plus side to having a look around your home now, and finding a company who can slot you in first thing in the spring for some masonry repairs such as tuckpointing or repointing, brick replacement and chimney restoration.

Slow Season

The winter time is the “slow season” for most masonry restoration companies. Mortar requires certain temperatures to cure (chemically harden) properly, so most companies hibernate throughout the winter. This is the time that a company, such as Wilkens Masonry, would be more than happy to come and give you a free estimate. We can outline work to be done the moment we have a warm spell and spring has sprung.

Why the Rush?

When spring begins, and almost everyone performs their home inspection to see what they need to get done, Wilkens will be flooded with calls and all of a sudden find ourselves with a six to eight week backlog of jobs to deliver. This is a great problem to have for us, however we all know that once the weather starts getting warmer, and the weekend plans start piling up, the necessary repairs to your home can get forgotten and lost in the shuffle. All of a sudden you find yourself at the end of the year again trying to find someone to squeeze you in.

Give us a Call for a Free Estimate!

At Wilkens masonry, our estimates are always free. We serve the Toronto and Hamilton areas. We will come by and give you an honest assessment coupled with a fair price for the services we deliver. Also, if the scope of work is something we don’t cover, we can always point you in the right direction of a company that can service your needs.

Check us out on Homestars and Google! You can also Contact us now for a free, no-obligation consultation or call us at 416 425 8055.

Mar

Creating Brick Openings For Windows and Doors

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New and Old Brick Openings

Old houses often need to have their windows upgraded, and brick openings are generally in need of updates to allow for new, modern, high-efficiency windows to be installed. Many older houses in Toronto, Hamilton and the GTA have brick arches above their windows which was the original way bricklayers would structure a wall to allow for support above the area where the bricks are absent. Nowadays, we use steel lintels to support the weight. They are much easier to install than brick arches and result in less trim work for the window installers to complete around the window after it has been installed. The arch is often considered more aesthetic as it has a traditional masonry look, but the clean and sharp lines of steel lintel-supported brick openings have a modern masonry appeal.

The Process

When altering a masonry opening on a house and changing the existing arch to a flat, steel lintel, the difficulty is in supporting the bricks above while you install the new support. We often use jack-posts and wedges which give us enough room to work. Once we have laid enough bricks on the lintel and the new mortar has hardened to offer support, we remove the posts and put on the finishing touches.

While some people want the brick arch to be recreated, which is something we can most definitely do, it takes quite a bit more time and, of course, more cost. We have to figure out a way to keep the original look but expand the arch further or contract it smaller so that the new window can fit seamlessly.

Working Together

At Wilkens, we have done both new brick-arched lintels and steel lintel installations hundreds of times and can be relied on to deliver the work you need to update your home and provide you with a sound and stable opening for your new windows.

We are fully insured, our estimates are free and we can work closely with you or a hired general contractor to make sure that our quote will fit in with any blueprints or plans that may exist.

Wilkens Masonry Is Now In Hamilton

Wilkens Masonry has officially set up shop in Hamilton, Ontario! We have been serving Toronto for 45 years and are excited to be in a new city where we can build our reputation as a full-service masonry restoration company. Get in touch for a free estimate to discuss your repointing, tuckpointing, parging, brick repair and chimney repair.

We are fully insured, our estimates are free and we can work closely with you or a hired general contractor to make sure that our quote will fit in with any blueprints or plans that may exist.

Check us out on Homestars and Google! You can also Contact us now for a free, no-obligation consultation or call us at 416 425 8055.

Jul

I need professional brick repair in Toronto

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I need professional brick repair in Toronto

Giving your home a unique appeal, many will admire requires professional care and maintenance. Wilkens Contracting wants you to know that brick restoration can be an excellent way to extend the lifespan of your masonry, as well as ensure it looks its best, but it should always be performed by an experienced professional. If you need professional brick repair in Toronto, Wilkens Contracting is just a phone call away!

Safety

A brick restoration expert is trained to repair and restore your home’s masonry work in the safest way possible. When your bricks are cracking or crumbling, it can be a sign of structural damage that needs proper repairs. For this reason, it’s always best to hire a brick restoration professional who can inspect your masonry and determine whether your home’s structural integrity has been compromised.

Experience

Brick restoration work can be complicated; in most cases, a professional will need to scrape away existing mortar and install new mortar, as well as re-point damaged bricks. Performing this properly requires extensive, hands-on experience that only a seasoned professional has.

Expertise

The same way there are many different types of lumber, there are also many bricks that have been used over the years. Some bricks might have been composed of a different type of clay than others or fired at a lower temperature, meaning they’ll require an expert touch to avoid damaging them during the repair process. A reliable brick restoration expert can easily determine how old your existing brick structure is and the brick it was built with. Then, they develop a repair plan to meet your structure’s unique restoration requirements.

What exactly is a brick mason?

Brick masons work with brick, be it real, manufactured, solid or veneer. They are commonly referred to as “bricklayers.” The process takes care and attention because the lines are typically very uniform and don’t forgive mistakes. Common installations include chimneys and fireplaces, columns, walls and patios.

Finding professional brick repair for your home in Toronto is easy when you choose Wilkens Contracting. Click here to find our contact information or to speak with a representative.

Jan

Masonry Repairs Near Me

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Masonry Repairs Near Me

If your home, or office, is made out of brick or stone walls, at some point you will need access to a professional mason. This is especially true if you are located in Canada, as weather exposure and elemental damage of brickwork are far worse during the nation’s prolonged winter months. If you are not actively keeping an eye on the brickwork of your home, and the seasonal damage acquired, the structural integrity could be compromised, resulting in disastrous consequences. Therefore, it is essential to you and your home’s safety, to routinely look for damaged brickwork and enlist the proper help for repairs. Here at Wilkens Contracting, we provide professional and expert masonry repairs to the GTA and beyond.

Continue to read through this post to recognize the signs of repairs.

Bowed Bricks

Bowed, or bulging, bricks that can be seen in your outer wall is a significant sign of needed repair. If you notice that the bricks in your wall are jutting out, or caving in, there must be excess moisture behind the material. This water damage can cause more structural problems if not dealt with, so if you notice deformed bricks in your wall, now is the time to call us at Wilkens Contracting!

To deal with this water damage, our team would remove the affected bricks, assess the problem, replace the damaged bricks with new, matching bricks, and rebuild the section.

Stress Cracks

Although they sound much more dangerous than they are, stress cracks occur on a regular basis. A crack in your foundation, within 30 degrees of vertical, signifies natural expansion. Cracks should still be repaired by a professional as soon as you notice them. Even though they may not cause an immediate structural problem, if left alone, water can seep into the cracks causing more severe damage, like bulging bricks.

If you call Wilkens Contracting for your masonry repairs, we can quickly fix your stress cracks. Our team will colour match the repair as close as possible.

Listed above are just a few of the adverse effects Canadian weather can have on masonry work. If you fear that your brickwork has fallen into disrepair and you need a professional and expert mason to facilitate the repair, our team can help.

Contact Us

Wilkens Contracting offers professional and expert masonry repairs for those seeking help in the GTA. We see the beauty in perfectly executed masonry. Our company takes pride in the work we do, and we want you to take pride in it with us.

Nov

Wilkens Contracting and Masonry Repairs

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Wilkens Contracting and Masonry Repairs in Toronto

Here at Wilkens Contracting, we place emphasis on our relationship with our Toronto based clients when it comes to masonry repairs and all of their restoration needs. Fully licensed and insured, our company prides itself on our customer service.

Making sure your brickwork and masonry are structural sound is what we do best. Read on to learn how Wilkens Contracting can help you and your masonry needs!

Repairs and Restorations

Masonry refers to the building of structures using individual units, often bound together by mortar, and is a highly durable form of construction, as many structures throughout history have been built using this method. But all buildings need a touch up now and again to make sure the walls are structurally sound and performing their functions to the best of the materials’ abilities.

Missing, cracked, or broken mortar is not a repair you should take lightly. As mortar binds and protects the brick themselves, it is an essential aspect of a structure and must be given the respect and care it deserves. As part of masonry services, we focus on maintaining the integrity of this mortar, known as tuckpointing.

Whether you are looking for masonry repairs, brick restoration, or chimney and fireplace repairs and rebuilds in the Toronto area, Wilkens Contracting has you covered.

A Company for all Seasons

Our company understands local weather patterns and the elemental damage that comes with living in a country with four very distinct seasons. With over three decades of knowledge and experience in the Toronto area, you are in safe hands when you choose Wilkens Contracting to do all of your masonry repairs.

Testimonials

Much of our business is gained through repeat clients and their referrals, illustrating just how much Wilkens Contracting focuses on satisfying all of our customers’ needs. Not only do we get the job done right, but we also do it in a timely and friendly manner. We take our clients through a step by step process of their repair so they can understand everything we are doing and why.

But don’t just take our word for it, check out what our previous clients had to say about our workmanship and customer service. As a family-based company providing masonry repairs to the Toronto area, Wilkens Contracting can serve all of your restoration needs.

Give us a call at 416-425-8055, or contact us online to get the process underway!

Oct

Masonry with Wilkens Contracting

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Masonry with Wilkens Contracting

At Wilkens Contracting, we take all of our masonry repairs seriously and give each client, and their homes, the care and attention they deserve. So if you live in the Greater Toronto Area and are in need of structural repairs, Wilkens Contracting is here for you!

Continue to read on to learn why Wilkens Contracting is one of the most trusted masonic contractors in the GTA!

Climate Consciousness

Having worked in Toronto for the whole of our existence, Wilkens Contracting understands the Canadian climate and the damage it can create on masonry construction. The country’s distinct four seasons can wreak havoc on brickwork, chimneys, fireplaces, and the like, especially in winter! We know what is needed to create structurally sound repairs and rebuilds that can withstand the volatile Canadian seasons.

Services

Wilkens Contracting can cover all of your masonry restorations in the GTA. Whether your chimney needs to be repaired or rebuilt, your fireplace refurbished or remodelled, or your bricks restored or tuckpointed, we are here for you!

Spalling damage is prominent in older buildings. This means that the brickwork and mortar are falling into disrepair, as the joints crumble and the bricks break apart, a building will become structurally unsound. When this happens, the masonry will need to be repaired, or even replaced, to keep the integrity of the structure. If you notice your brickwork is spalling, than contact us here at Wilkens Contracting, and we can bring your building back to its original condition, with our top of the line tuckpointing process.

Individual Care

Wilkens Contracting is a family run and family oriented company. This means we treat each of our clients like family. We will provide top of the line services, backed by over four decades of experience in the contracting industry, to all those who place their trust in our hands. Our masons are fully licensed and insured, and wholly knowledgeable about the industry so you can be sure you are getting the best of the best when you hire us!

Wilkens Contracting masonry testimonials speak for themselves, so have a look at what our previous clients have had to say! We look forward to adding you to our ever-growing list of satisfied customers.

Our company promises to provide all of our clients with the best services possible. We take pride in our friendly and open manner, and the knowledge and experience we have gained through our decades of existence. We will do everything in our power to complete your project on time and to the best of our ability.

So enlist the help of our masons here at Wilkens Contracting by giving us a call (416-425-8055), or contacting us online!

Oct

Masonry Restoration with Wilkens Contracting

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Masonry Restoration at Wilkens Contracting

Wilkens Contracting sees the art and beauty behind perfectly executed masonry restoration. If you are in the Greater Toronto area and are looking for someone to repair your walls, fireplaces, or chimneys, look no further than Wilkens Contracting.

Read on to learn why Wilkens Contracting is leagues above the rest!

Centuries-Old Knowledge

Technological progression of stonework and architectural integrity is what has propelled humanity into the future. With a focus on building bigger, better, and stronger structures, our history is filled with buildings that have lasted generations. This is all thanks to the builders who spearheaded innovative stone techniques and dared to try new materials and architectural forms.

Here at Wilkens Contracting, we take the knowledge gathered through centuries of masonry work and use it in our twenty-first-century jobs to produce the highest quality stonework our clients can be proud of.

Tuckpointing

Here at Wilkens Contracting tuckpointing is just one of the masonry restoration projects we can undertake. Tuckpointing is most often used for aesthetic repairs and maintenance when the bricks begin to spall (crumble and break apart on the surface). We focus on evening out the mortar joints of older brickwork to give an even and unified look to the structure.

Our masons tint the mortar before applying directly to the joints, so the new material can blend evenly with the existing colours and shadowing. By doing it this way, Wilkens Contracting will leave your brickwork looking seamlessly vibrant so you won’t have to worry about the eyesore of patchwork or mismatched bricks. Take a look at all of our tuckpointing testimonials from our previous satisfied clients.

Renovations

Wilkens Contracting also offers other types of masonry restoration. We can create new openings in your walls for all of your renovation projects, whether they are window size, door size, or any size in between. Our company can also resize openings to fit new frames.

Our masons have access to many types of antique bricks, so we can easily match the materials used on many older structures in Toronto, so you won’t have to worry about any unsightly repairs. Have a look at our photo gallery to see the seamless work with your own eyes!

Wilkens Contracting brings that knowledge and understanding to every one of our masonry restoration jobs. We see the beauty in perfectly executed masonry. Our company takes pride in the work we do, and we want you to take pride in it with us.

21

Dec