You need a masonry contractor when the job is built from individual units, such as brick, concrete block or stone, set in mortar, and a concrete contractor when it is poured into forms, such as a driveway, patio, sidewalk, slab or poured foundation. The question of masonry contractor vs concrete contractor turns on how the thing is built, not on what material it looks like.
True Course Masonry Newark repairs and builds brick, block and stone masonry across Newark and Essex County, with the work carried out by licensed and insured contractors, and takes jobs of every size, including small repairs. It does not pour concrete flatwork. This guide explains where the line between the two trades falls and what to do when a job sits on both sides of it. The masonry repair services page lists the work that is offered.
Units vs pours: the basic difference
A masonry wall is assembled. Each brick, block or stone is a finished unit, set by hand on a bed of mortar, with the joints filled and tooled. The skill is in laying units plumb, level and in bond, choosing a mortar compatible with the units, and in repairs, cutting out and replacing units and joints without disturbing the sound work around them. Mortar and grout are different materials here: mortar bonds the units, while grout fills cells and cavities in reinforced block.
Concrete is cast. A concrete contractor builds forms, places reinforcement, pours a mix of cement, sand, stone and water, then finishes and cures the surface in one continuous operation. The skill is in subgrade preparation, form work, placement, finishing, control joints and curing a large area.
The two trades use some of the same materials, and both deal with cement, but the work, tools and repair methods are different. A concrete driveway is not repaired by a mason, and a brick wall is not repointed by a concrete finisher.
What a masonry contractor handles
Masonry work, and what this business offers, includes:
- Brick walls and facades: repointing worn joints and replacing damaged brick, covered on the brick pointing service and brick repair pages.
- Concrete block (CMU) walls: repairing cracked, displaced or deteriorated block walls and their joints, covered under block wall repair.
- Stone and brownstone: fronts, sills, trim, stone foundations and garden walls.
- Chimneys: repointing, brick replacement, crowns and rebuilding the masonry stack.
- Brick and stone stoops and steps: treads, risers, joints and rebuilding failed masonry stoops.
- Lintels and openings: replacing rusted steel lintels and rebuilding the brick above them, as on the lintel replacement page.
- Parapets and copings, and new brick and block walls.
What a concrete contractor handles
Concrete work belongs with a concrete contractor and is not offered here:
- Driveways, patios, walkways and sidewalks
- Garage floors, basement slabs and other slabs on grade
- Poured concrete steps and stoops with no masonry facing
- Poured concrete foundation walls and footings for new buildings
- Stamped or decorative concrete and concrete resurfacing
Other specialties that sit near masonry but are separate, and also not offered here, include retaining walls, structural foundation repair, basement waterproofing, and chimney sweeping and flue liners.
The gray areas
Block foundations and basement walls
A concrete block foundation is masonry, and repointing its joints or replacing a broken block is masonry work. A block foundation wall that is bowing inward, has a long horizontal crack or shows ongoing movement raises a structural question that a structural engineer and a foundation repair specialist answer first. A stair-step crack in block or brick does not by itself mean the foundation is failing, but it is a reason to look at what moved; the stair-step cracks guide explains how.
Stoops with brick and concrete
Many front stoops combine a poured concrete core or slab with brick or stone facing, treads or caps. The masonry layer is a mason’s job and the concrete core is concrete work. When the brick has cracked because the concrete underneath settled, the two have to be handled together, or the masonry will crack again. The stoop and brick step repair page covers the masonry side, and the stoop repair cost guide covers what moves the price.
Footings for new masonry
A new brick or block wall sits on a concrete footing. Footing design depends on the wall’s height and purpose, and the scope for a new wall should state who places the footing and when masonry begins on it. The brick wall construction page explains how a new wall is scoped.
Parging and coatings
Parging is a cement-based coat troweled over block or stone foundation walls. It is applied to masonry and is part of masonry work, but it is a surface finish, not a fix for water or movement problems in the wall behind it.
How to describe your job
The fastest way to the right trade is to describe what the thing is made of and how it was built. Brick, block or stone with mortar joints you can see is masonry. A continuous gray surface with cut or tooled control joints every few feet is poured concrete. Mixed construction should be described as mixed so both parts can be scoped. The guide to hiring a masonry contractor in NJ explains what a written estimate should include, from New Jersey’s contractor registration rules to contracts over $500, and the masonry repair cost guide covers budgeting.