If you’re looking for a masonry contractor in Oak Park, MI, there’s usually already something you’re watching. A porch has started settling. Mortar is opening up between the brick. Concrete has cracked near the steps or driveway. Maybe the chimney just doesn’t look quite right anymore. Lovell Masonry helps Oak Park homeowners figure out what’s happening, what needs repair, and what can stay.
One thing we see fairly often is a homeowner calling about one cracked brick, then finding out the brick isn’t really the problem.
Porches and steps are a good example. If a porch has moved, repairing the visible crack without understanding the movement underneath it may not get you very far. The same goes for concrete near driveways and entry areas. Sometimes it’s surface damage. Sometimes part of the structure has settled.
Michigan weather doesn’t make any of that easier. Once water gets into failing mortar or concrete and freezes, the damaged area can keep changing from one season to the next.
They provided a detailed estimate, arrived on time each day, and the finished job exceeded expectations.
We are so very pleased with the entire experience with Lovell Masonry. They provided a detailed estimate, arrived on time each day, and the finished job exceeded our expectations.
They went above and beyond to make a large brick patio look like new.
Great company. We have a very large brick patio that needed to be power washed and replace the polymeric sand. He went over and above to make sure our patio looked like new. Would definitely hire again.
The crew rebuilt the front porch from the bottom up and did an amazing job.
I had my front porch rebuilt from the bottom up. The crew did an amazing job. I would recommend them in a heartbeat.
Lovell Masonry reinstalled and leveled patio steps and handled the approval process well.
Very happy with the work Lovell Masonry completed to reinstall and level my patio steps from the kitchen entry door to the back patio. Team was great at handling inspection and project approval process as well!
The tuckpointing and brick work looked awesome.
These guys were great, my tuck pointing and brick look awesome. Highly recommended.
They came out quickly for the estimate, rebuilt the chimney to the roofline, and even fixed a few extra bricks.
Came out quick for estimate. Took apart my chimney to the roof line and basically rebuilt it in one day. Even fixed a few errant bricks on the ground. Recommend them for any brick work.
We can usually tell pretty quickly whether we’re looking at isolated wear or something that deserves a closer look. With brick repair, that might mean checking the surrounding mortar and looking for movement beyond the damaged area. With a chimney, we’re looking at where the deterioration is showing up and how much masonry is affected.
A porch can be a different conversation.
Older porch structures can develop movement in the steps, brick, concrete, or where the porch meets the house. Before deciding what to cut out, patch, replace, or rebuild, the first step is understanding what actually moved.
That matters on a new project, too. Builders and general contractors usually aren’t looking for a long explanation from another business on the job. They need the masonry scope understood, the right materials identified, and the work coordinated with the rest of the project.
Lovell Masonry offers senior and military discounts on eligible masonry projects. Discount details can vary by project scope, so contact the team to talk through the work and ask what may be available.
One thing we find pretty often is that most of the masonry is still fine.
You might have a section of brick that’s deteriorated while everything around it is solid. Or one part of a concrete porch or driveway has cracked or settled and the rest hasn’t moved much at all.
That’s a different job than tearing everything out.
The same comes up with chimney work and tuckpointing. We look at where the damage is, what the surrounding masonry looks like, and how far the problem actually goes so the repair doesn’t become bigger than it needs to be.
On an Oak Park property that’s been through years of Michigan weather, sometimes the repair is smaller than it looks. Sometimes it isn’t. You usually know once you stop looking at the first crack and start looking at what’s around it.
A few questions usually come up before homeowners decide what to do.
A masonry contractor builds and repairs structures made from materials such as brick, stone, mortar, and concrete. Around Oak Park homes, that can include porches, steps, chimneys, walls, walkways, patios, and sections of driveways.
Sometimes. It depends on what caused the crack, how much the porch has moved, and the condition of the surrounding masonry or concrete. That’s why the repair decision starts with looking at the whole area instead of the crack by itself.
Yes. Temperature matters when masonry materials are curing, and years of Michigan weather can contribute to deterioration in brick, mortar, concrete, porches, and chimneys. The condition and timing of the work both need to be considered.
You usually can’t tell from one damaged brick or one concrete crack. The surrounding area matters. Lovell Masonry can look at the work and explain whether a localized repair makes sense or the project needs a larger scope.
If something around your Oak Park home or property has started cracking, settling, or coming apart, have it looked at before deciding how much work it needs. Lovell Masonry can review the project, explain the repair scope, and help you decide what makes sense.
Lovell Masonry is a small, family-owned masonry contractor based in Royal Oak and serving homeowners across Metro Detroit. With more than 25 years of hands-on experience, the company focuses on practical residential masonry work for brick, mortar, chimneys, porches, concrete, pavers, patios, and stonework.
