Brick wall installation in Springfield IL - a garden wall that stays dry and straight
Old wall leaning and crumbling, or a yard that needs one? We build brick walls that shed water and look like they belong.
What goes into a brick garden wall that holds up?
Brick wall installation in Springfield, IL means building a freestanding brick garden wall from the ground up and finishing it with a coping, a cap that keeps rain out of the top of the wall. At Artisan Springfield Concrete and Masonry, we build them to stand straight, stay dry at the base and look like they came with your house.
Most people call because they want to close off a yard, frame a patio or replace an old wall that's leaning and coming apart, and some find out the old one only needs brick repair. The price comes down to how long and tall the wall is, the brick you pick, whether it has piers or curves, how level the ground is and whether a patio or path gets built with it. The schedule turns on the weather, the brick order and what your city asks for before we dig, and the estimate I write after seeing your yard gives you your own number.
What our brick wall installation covers
I start by walking the line with you, marking where the wall runs and looking at how the ground falls. We help you pick a brick that suits the house and the weather, dig out and pack a solid base, then lay the wall course by course, with piers or a staggered line if the design calls for it. The top gets a coping to keep water out, and we clean the brick face and haul off our mess. Any patio or path next to the wall gets planned at the same time, so water heads away from the bottom rows of brick instead of sitting against them.
Some yards call for a mix of materials, and we do stone masonry for caps, piers or a whole wall when stone fits the house better. Down the road, any brick wall needs its joints kept up, and brick pointing is how we replace worn mortar before water works its way in.
Brick walls, patios and permits in Springfield
Springfield's Building & Zoning Department issues permits, and its list names building, demolition, roof, sign, floodplain, erosion control, fence and parking lot work, not brick walls. That list doesn't settle whether your wall needs a permit, so the city's code officials are the people to ask. I check with the city or village office for your address before we start, and if your wall needs a permit, we take care of the paperwork.
A city permit doesn't confirm your ground suits a wall, and Springfield leaves soil compaction and mine subsidence, ground sinking over old mines, for the owner to look into. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources has more on mine subsidence at 217-782-0588. When I walk a yard, I look for soft fill, low spots and places where water sits after rain, because a brick wall only stays true on ground that stays put. We see the same kinds of yards on jobs in Chatham and Decatur.
How a brick wall gets built
Call or send the form
Tell us where the wall would go and roughly how long you want it. We'll set a time for me to come out and see it.
I look at your yard
I check the ground, the slope and any paving next to the spot, and tell you what I see. You get a written estimate with the brick, the wall shape and the price spelled out, so you're not guessing.
We check rules and pick dates
Once you say go, we check what your city or village asks for. Then we set build dates around the forecast and your schedule.
We build and walk it
Our crew lays the wall, sets the coping and cleans up. Before we pack up, we walk the finished wall with you.
Get a written price for your brick wall and the paving beside it
We reply to every call and form within one business day. I come out myself, look over the spot and write you a free estimate. There's no obligation to book.
Questions before you build a brick wall
How much does a brick wall cost in Springfield, IL?
Across the US, brick wall installation covering 220 square feet of finished area usually costs about $13,000 to $18,500 per job. That's a national figure, not a Springfield price and not ours, and your wall can land above or below it depending on its size, the brick and how much ground prep it needs. I'll give you your own number in writing after I see the yard.
What is the best brick for an outdoor garden wall?
The best brick for an outside wall is one durable enough to stand up to weather and frost for the long term, according to UK brick industry guidance. Ask your builder how the brick you've chosen handles frost before it's ordered. I go over that with you at the estimate, along with how it'll look next to your house.
How do I keep the bottom of a brick wall from staying wet?
Slope the paving on either side away from the wall where you can, or add a drainage strip, which is what the same UK guidance recommends to keep the bottom rows of brick from soaking. Where the ground is higher on one side of the wall, that guidance says a membrane, a waterproof layer, may be needed against water and ground salt. That's why I'd rather plan the patio with the wall than after it.
Does cold or hot weather affect new brickwork?
Yes. Cold and hot weather both work against brick and mortar, and how they perform, while a wall is going up. When we set your build dates, ask how the fresh brickwork gets protected if a cold or hot day comes, and I'll walk you through it.
What makes a freestanding brick garden wall stable?
UK brick guidance says a wall gains effective thickness from a thicker base, from piers, which are short brick columns built into the wall, or from a zigzag or staggered layout. Each one looks different on your property, so ask which one a design uses. I'll show you the options when I come out.
Do I need a floodplain permit to build a brick wall in Springfield?
You might, because Springfield requires a floodplain development permit before any development in a floodplain begins, and its list of developments includes new buildings, swimming pools and fences. If your lot sits in a floodplain, tell me when you call. We'll get the city's answer for your wall before anyone digs.
Why Springfield homeowners call Artisan Springfield Concrete and Masonry for brick walls
Learned under a working mason
I learned to lay brick under an older mason right out of school and started this business in 2013, so we've been at it 13 years. You're getting someone who came back to this trade by choice and knows what a wall needs to last.
The owner lays brick too
I'm on our jobs working right alongside the crew, not just showing up for the estimate. Satisfaction guaranteed on every job, and with me at the wall you can ask questions as it goes up.
Licensed and insured on every job
We're licensed and insured. That matters when a crew is digging, mixing mortar and stacking pallets of brick on your property.
Code questions answered before digging
In Springfield, the city's Building Division enforces the building codes, so that's who settles code questions about your wall. I'd rather have that answer before the first brick goes down than tear one out after.
A wall like this lives or dies by what's under it and where the water goes. Book your estimate or call (217) 210-0722.
Other masonry work around your new wall
Brick pointing
Once your new wall has a few winters on it, or if an older wall already does, fresh mortar in worn joints keeps water out of the brick.
Stone masonry
If stone suits your house better than brick, or you'd like stone caps on a brick wall, our stone work can be fitted to the rest of the yard.
Plan your brick wall and patio together
Call (217) 210-0722 or send the form with a note about any paving beside the spot, ground that's higher on one side or a floodplain lot, so I come out knowing what to check.
