Can you repoint brick or repair concrete yourself, or should you hire a mason?

Updated November 11, 2026 · KeystoneProGuide editorial team

What can a homeowner safely do?

Watch, keep water away, and look after the surfaces. Most of what protects masonry is upkeep that needs no trade skill:

• Inspect. The National Park Service (NPS) says exposed masonry should be inspected periodically for cracks, spalling, bulges, leaning and failing mortar. Photographs taken at the same spot each year show whether anything is changing.
• Monitor cracks. The NPS advises watching a crack over time to see whether it is active before deciding how to repair it.
• Move water away. Penn State Extension says all downspouts should be directed away from foundations to avoid basement flooding. The Federal Emergency Management Agency advises adding soil with a binding material such as clay around the foundation and sloping it away from the house.
• Use less salt. Penn State Extension's advice is to clear snow first, apply deicer only where people walk or drive, follow the label and sweep up the extra. Sand is one of the alternatives it names.
• Clean gently. For dirt on brick, the gentlest method the General Services Administration (GSA) names for historic masonry is water and a soft bristle brush.

FEMA's flood guidance also tells homeowners to fill foundation cracks with mortar and masonry caulk and to seal holes where pipes and cables enter. A crack that is wide, growing or letting in water is a different matter, covered under warning signs.

Should you repoint an old brick house yourself?

The federal guidance points to a professional. The NPS says repointing old brick requires care and "is best done with professionals familiar with historic masonry techniques", and that all too often more damage is done to historic brick buildings by improper pointing than by almost any other treatment.

The risk is in the materials. The NPS explains that historic mortar is a soft lime mix and has to stay softer than the masonry around it. Its warning about off-the-shelf products is blunt: the mortar repair kits sold in hardware stores contain a high degree of portland cement and produce a very hard surface, which it says is fine for modern materials but "disastrous for older masonry buildings". Its example is a sandstone house where hard pointing and parging made the stone wear away around the joints.

So on a pre-war house, the job a homeowner can do is the one before the repair: finding out what the mortar is, and asking the right questions of the mason.

Why is cutting and grinding masonry a job for a contractor?

Because of the dust. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) says sawing brick or concrete, drilling into concrete and grinding mortar release respirable crystalline silica, particles at least 100 times smaller than ordinary sand. Workers who breathe it are at increased risk of silicosis, an incurable lung disease, as well as lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and kidney disease.

OSHA's construction rule shows what control takes. For a handheld grinder used to cut out mortar, it calls for a shroud and a dust collector of set airflow with a high-efficiency filter, plus a respirator for the worker. For saws it calls for water fed continuously to the blade. It also bars dry sweeping where wetting or HEPA vacuuming would work. The rule covers employers, not homeowners, but it shows the equipment a dusty job needs. A homeowner with an ordinary grinder has none of it.

Can you dig a footing or a patio base yourself?

You can, but you must call 811 first. Pennsylvania 811 says that if you plan to disturb the earth with powered equipment you are obliged by law to notify the utilities, and its FAQ adds that you must contact it whenever you intend to dig, at any depth. Requests go in three to ten business days ahead. The service is free for homeowners digging on their own property. If you hire someone, they call, and their call protects them; yours does not.

Where does the law draw lines?

Some limits apply whoever does the work. Under the state code regulation, a retaining wall over 4 feet, or one supporting a surcharge, needs a permit, and cutting away part of a load-bearing wall is never an ordinary repair. If a painted surface on a house built before 1978 will be disturbed, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency requires a paid contractor to be lead-safe certified.

What should you leave to a professional?

• Repointing or rebuilding brick or stone on an older house.
• Any work that involves cutting, grinding or drilling masonry.
• Walls that bulge, lean or carry a load, and cracks through bricks over windows and doors.
• Retaining walls above the permit line and anything holding up a slope or driveway.
• Removing paint from a pre-1978 house.

When you hire, the Pennsylvania rules guide explains registration and permits, and businesses are listed on the masonry contractors page.

Sources

1. Common Problems with Brick Masonry, U.S. National Park Service
2. This Masonry is for the Bees!, U.S. National Park Service
3. Mortar, Unsung Hero of History, U.S. National Park Service
4. Silica, Crystalline - Overview, U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration
5. 1926.1153 - Respirable crystalline silica., U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration
6. FAQs Homeowners, Pennsylvania One Call System (Pennsylvania 811)
7. Homeowners, Pennsylvania One Call System (Pennsylvania 811)
8. 34 Pa. Code § 403.62. Permit requirements and exemptions., Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (Pennsylvania Code)
9. How Can I Control Stormwater on My Property?, Penn State Extension
10. Fact Sheet: Be Flood Smart. Protect Your Property, Federal Emergency Management Agency
11. Watershed-friendly Deicing, Penn State Extension
12. Renovation, Repair and Painting Program: Contractors, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
13. Cleaning historic masonry, U.S. General Services Administration