Wall repair
An old wall, put back right
New England is full of stone walls laid with care and then left to a few hundred winters. Ours is the work of taking a tired one down and giving it the base it never had.
We repair
Field walls and property lines
Retaining walls that have started to move
Piers, steps and gate posts
What we look for
Four signs a wall needs attention
A lean
The top of the wall has moved out from the base. Usually frost has lifted it, or water has pushed soil against the back.
A bulge
The face has swelled in the middle. The fill behind it is moving.
Open joints
Gaps between stones, or mortar that has cracked and fallen out.
Fallen stone
A section has come down. The stones are usually still on site, and we reuse them.
How it goes
Taken down, then rebuilt
- 01
Look and record
We photograph the wall, mark the stones in the damaged section and note where the water goes.
- 02
Take it down
The loose section comes down stone by stone, sorted by size and face.
- 03
Rebuild the base
A new base below the frost, with drainage stone behind it.
- 04
Put it back
The same stone goes back, course by course, with new stone only where the old is lost.
Questions
About repairs
Can you repair part of a wall?
Yes. Often only a section has moved. We take down that section and the stretch around it, so the new work ties into sound wall.
Why did my wall fall down?
Most walls fail from the bottom: a base too shallow for the frost, or water with nowhere to go. We look for the cause at the visit, because fixing the stone without it brings the wall back down.
Will the repair match the old wall?
We reuse your stone and the old pattern, and we bring samples when new stone is needed. A repaired wall will look different for the first season.
Site visits
Walk the site with us
Leave your name and cell number. We text you from the shop to set a day, and Hugo or Katie come out with a tape and a probe bar.
The written scope comes after the visit, with the stone and the base listed.