Brick wall installation in Riverside CA - a wall built square on a solid footing
Fence leaning again, or an old wall cracked through? We build a new brick wall on a poured footing, capped to shed the rain.
Get your brick wall measured and priced
Call (951) 462-2880 or use the form, and mention any old brick you're hoping to reuse so I can look at it on the same visit.
What does it take to build a brick wall in Riverside?
Brick wall installation in Riverside means building a freestanding garden or privacy wall from fired clay brick on a footing that keeps it straight, and our crew handles it from the first trench to the cap.
Most calls about a new brick wall start with a fence that's given up, a yard that needs closing in or an old wall that's past saving. The price moves mostly with the wall's length and height, the brick you pick and how the ground runs, and the schedule turns on whether the wall needs a permit, so the written estimate spells out what we'll build for your yard and how. When a wall needs a permit, we pull it and schedule the inspections.
Why Riverside homeowners call Keystone Riverside Concrete and Masonry for brick walls
The owner measures your wall
I come out myself to look at the yard, measure the run and write the estimate. A lead mason runs our crew on site, so you know who's in charge of your wall each day.
Building in Riverside since 2017
I started this company in Riverside in 2017 after years laying brick and block for a big commercial outfit. That's where I learned to build to the drawings and to an inspector's eye.
Licensed and fully insured crew
We're licensed and fully insured, which matters on a wall job because the crew is digging footings, mixing mortar and lifting brick in your yard. Satisfaction guaranteed on every job.
The footing does the most work on a brick wall, and you'll never see it again once the brick goes up, so that's where I start. Ask for an estimate and I'll come out and measure your wall.
How we handle brick wall installation
I start on your lot with a tape and a string line, because where the wall runs and how the ground falls along it decide the design. On ground that isn't level, a pier and panel wall is often the sensible build, with thin brick panels braced by brick piers, and brick industry guidance counts it among the easier and more economical designs because it adapts to uneven ground. We dig and pour the footing, set steel where the design calls for it, lay the brick and tool the joints so water runs off instead of sitting in them. Then comes the cap, and the same guidance calls for a coping that sticks out past the brick on both sides with a drip, so rain falls clear instead of streaking down the face. If you've got old brick you'd like to reuse, I'll look at it, but used brick often isn't fit for an outdoor wall and I'll say so. The FAQ below explains why.
A brick wall often shares the yard with other masonry. We do stone masonry when you'd like stone mixed in, and brick pointing for older brick on the property whose mortar is wearing out.
Solid brick garden wall
This suits level ground and spots where you want a finished brick face on both sides, like a privacy wall between yards. It takes more brick, and it reads as one solid piece.
Pier and panel wall
This suits long runs and yards that slope, because the panels can step down between the piers. When the ground isn't level, it's usually the build I'll suggest first.
Is it time for a new brick wall?
Fence posts rotting out
A wood fence that leans a little more every year usually has posts rotting at the ground. Each patch buys you a season, and brick on a poured footing doesn't rot.
Cracks through the brick
When a crack runs through the brick itself and not just the mortar, the wall under it has usually moved. Wait long enough and a section can lean out over your yard.
Mortar that rubs off
If you can rub the joints out with your thumb, that mortar was mostly sand and good intentions. On a wall that's leaning too, rebuilding often makes more sense than chasing it joint by joint.
A slope along the line
If the ground drops along where you want the wall, a flat-topped design leaves gaps underneath or buries brick. It's a design question to settle at the estimate, before anything gets dug.
What happens after you call about a brick wall in Riverside?
Call or send the form
You call or send the form, and I come out to look at the spot and measure it. You get a written estimate that says what we'll build and how.
Permit first, then the build
If the wall needs a permit, we get it first, which in Riverside usually means Planning clearance before the city checks the plans. Then a lead mason runs our crew on site.
I check it before sign-off
When the cap's on, I walk the wall and check it myself before we call it finished, and our crew leaves your yard clear of broken brick and mortar.
Brick wall questions from Riverside
Here's what Riverside homeowners usually ask before a brick wall goes in. If your yard, your brick or your permit question isn't covered here, call and ask about your own job.
How do I find out if my brick wall needs a permit in Riverside?
The City of Riverside issues permits for most construction, and its list of work that doesn't need one includes fences no taller than seven feet, though that doesn't settle every brick wall. A wall in the front yard setback may also need approval from the city's Planning Division, and the city can issue many permits to the owner, an authorized agent or a licensed contractor. If the answer isn't clear for your wall, we check with the city before we start, not after.
Who is allowed to build a brick wall in California?
A contractor with California's C-29 masonry license is the right builder, since the state licensing board lists that license for masonry walls for structures and fences. An unlicensed worker can only take a job under $1,000, and only when it needs no permit and they have nobody working for them. A wall that needs a permit, or a handyman who shows up with helpers, calls for a licensed contractor.
How do I check a masonry contractor's license before hiring in Riverside?
Ask for their state license and confirm it with the state licensing board, because Riverside asks contractors for that same proof. The city also asks contractors for a current City of Riverside business license, so ask every bidder for both when you're comparing estimates.
What inspections happen when a wall is built in Riverside?
When a permit is required, the county's standard plan for freestanding block walls calls for a footing inspection, a rebar inspection and a final, with the final after the grout is in and before any decorative cap goes on. Riverside's standard plans are also drawn for block walls, and a wall built to one has to follow it exactly, while any change needs its own design from a design professional. For a brick wall, the path depends on the design, and the city has the final word on it.
How much does a brick wall cost in Riverside?
There's no set price, because the figure comes from your wall, and I give it to you in writing after I've measured. Beyond size and brick, the cost goes up with columns, gate openings, a deep or stepped footing, an old wall to break out and a yard a truck can't reach, so bring those up when we meet.
Can I use old or salvaged brick for a garden wall?
Usually not, because brick industry guidance says used brick belongs in a garden wall only if it meets the SW grade, the one made for severe weather, and used brick generally falls short. It's often unevenly fired, so a pile that looks fine can be a mix of hard and soft brick. Set some aside for the estimate and I'll tell you straight.
Get a written brick wall estimate
Tell us the wall's length, height, spot on the lot and any brick you hope to reuse. We reply within one business day to set up a free on-site estimate, I come out and measure, and there's no obligation.
Brick walls and finishes
Work that goes with a brick wall
Stone masonry
Stone pillars at the ends or a stone cap along the top change the whole look of the wall, and we build them on the same footing.
Learn moreBrick pointing
If another brick wall on your property has soft, crumbling joints, fresh mortar keeps water out and brings it closer to the new wall's tight lines.
Learn more