To test the integrity of your mortar joints, poke them with an ice pick. If the mortar seems sandy and falls out easily, the joints have deteriorated to the point where you have to do something. Moisture will continue to work its way into the brick or block, if you don’t correct the problem eventually, causing more deterioration. If there is water coming through, once the source of the water has been eliminated, the mortar joints can be repointed, covered with stucco, or touched up and painted. The least expensive is to repoint. Repointing is highly labor intensive. Remove any material that crumbles easily, don’t hammer hard enough to crack the brick. Clean out the joints with a hose. Put the mortar on a flat board. Fill the joints with a small trowel. After the mortar has stiffened slightly, run the trowel or a shaping tool (a jointer) along the new joints to make their profile match that of the old ones.

If you have problems with crumbling walls it’s covered in Section J of The Home Waterproofers Manual – Home Waterproofing A to Z. I’ve used this same knowledge every day to fix water problems. It will work for you too. You can save thousands of dollars by learning what is going on first. You can get the job done fast, at low cost and have a dry, healthy and livable home again. Don’t put yourself at the mercy of high priced waterproofers.

You can save thousands of dollars and many headaches by learning what is going on first. Often what looks like an expensive and serious problem may not be. Once the problem is explained, solving it is just common sense. I’ve used the knowledge I’ve put in The Home Waterproofers Manual – Home Waterproofing A to Z every day to fix water problems. It will work for you too.

But remember, when dealing with salesmen, in the waterproofing business it’s “buyer beware”. Most get a percentage of the sale and don’t consider it their job to save you money. They charge as much as they can. If they see a problem that can be fixed at low cost, or one that has a simple solution, they won’t mention it, but will only talk about “preventing serious damage” and try to scare you into signing a big contract.