Masonry Contractor in Sun Valley, NV - Walls Footed Below the Frost Line
Anchorstone Reno Concrete and Masonry builds and repairs block walls, retaining walls, brick, stone, chimneys and walkways for homes in Sun Valley, NV, working from our base in Reno.
Masonry work in Sun Valley
Sun Valley sits in its own valley, with Sparks on the east and Reno on the west, so it's close to home for a masonry contractor in Reno, NV like us. Most of the calls we get here are about the outside of the house: a block wall along a property line, a retaining wall where the yard climbs, steps and walkways, and brick or chimney repair on the older homes. We do the same kind of work out in Cold Springs.
What moves the price on a Sun Valley job is mostly the ground and the size of the work, meaning how tall the wall runs, what it's faced with and how much digging it takes. The schedule usually turns on the weather and on whether the job needs a county permit, and at the estimate I walk your lot with you and lay out what we'd do and why. Toward the edges of the valley, lots get bigger and steeper and we often hit rock when we dig, so a wall there starts with grading and a footing cut into firm ground.
Our masonry work in Sun Valley
When a foundation wall cracks or a corner settles on sloped Sun Valley ground, we find the cause first and fix that, not just the crack.
Freeze and thaw is hard on chimney tops here. We rebuild cracked crowns, the concrete cap on top, and loose brick so water stays out.
Tuckpointing fills worn joints with mortar matched to your brick, then adds a thin finishing line, so an older Sun Valley house looks crisp again without new brick.
On brick homes here, the bricks that crack or lose their face usually sit near a downspout or the ground. We replace just those and match the rest.
A paver driveway handles the valley's freeze and thaw well, because each paver can move a little without cracking. A packed gravel base is what keeps it level.
Where a Sun Valley lot climbs, a retaining wall turns slope into usable yard, with a footing and drainage sized to the soil we find.
Older brick and stone houses here often carry decades of patches in the wrong mortar. We take those out and rebuild with materials that work with the original.
Cold Sun Valley winter nights make a fireplace worth having. We build masonry fireplaces and surrounds, and set any manufactured unit to its maker's instructions.
Stone veneer is a thin layer of real or manufactured stone over a wall, and it suits the rocky hills here on a front wall or porch column.
Block walls are a common property line fence here because they stand up to wind and sun. We set them on a real footing and cap the top.
For an addition, garage or crawlspace on a Sun Valley lot, we lay the block foundation walls and fill their hollow cores with steel and grout, a runny concrete.
Long summer evenings here are made for cooking outside. We build the block base, the stone or brick face and the counters around your grill and sink.
On a sloped lot, we build walkways in brick, stone or pavers with a slight pitch so snowmelt runs off instead of freezing on the path.
A brick garden or front yard wall gives a house here a finished edge, and we set it on a footing below where winter ground freezes.
With rock showing on the hills around Sun Valley, natural stone fits right in. We lay it for walls, steps and planters, fitting each piece by hand.
Pointing means raking out worn mortar and packing in fresh, and it's often all an older brick wall needs. If yours can wait a year, I'll say so.
What Sun Valley homes ask of masonry
When you call, the person who looks at your job and writes the estimate is me, and I'm on site with our crew while the work gets done.
Drainage behind retaining walls
Snowmelt and storm runoff push hard on a wall from behind, so our retaining walls get gravel and a drain.
You see what I see
I walk you around your house and point out the joints, cracks or drainage behind the problem before we price anything.
Told plainly what can wait
If a crack is old and stable or your mortar has years left, I'll say so instead of selling a repair.
Permits sorted before we start
When your job needs a permit, we find out which office covers your address and handle the application.
Licensed, insured, satisfaction guaranteed
We're licensed and fully insured, and the same promise covers small repairs and big walls, satisfaction guaranteed on every job.
Sun Valley masonry questions
Do I need a permit for a retaining wall in Sun Valley, NV?
Not always. Washoe County's list of work that needs no permit includes retaining walls up to 48 inches tall, measured from the ground beside them, as long as they carry no surcharge, extra weight above the wall like a driveway, a sloped yard or a building. Any retaining wall with that extra weight needs a permit, and when yours does, we handle the application before work starts.
Who can pull a building permit for masonry work in Sun Valley?
Washoe County issues building permits in Sun Valley, and it gives an owner/builder permit, the kind for doing the work yourself, only to the homeowner. Every other residential permit goes to a licensed contractor, so when we do the job, the permit goes through us. I find out which office covers your address and take care of it before we start.
How do I check that a masonry contractor in Sun Valley is properly licensed?
Ask to see their Nevada State Contractors Board license, because anyone who builds or alters a structure in Nevada needs one before they can even bid. The exception is repair work under $1,000, labor and materials together, and it doesn't count when the job needs a building permit or is part of a larger project of $500 or more. Since Sun Valley sits in unincorporated Washoe County, a contractor who comes in to work also needs a county business license.
What is the best way to set a footing for a masonry wall in Sun Valley?
Set it deeper than 24 inches, because Washoe County's design rules for Northern Nevada put the frost line, how deep winter freezing reaches, at that depth, and a footing above it can heave. The same rules put the area in seismic design category D2, a high earthquake rating, so block walls here usually get steel bars and grout in their hollow cores. I'll go over what your wall needs when I come out.
What causes cracks in brick and block walls in Sun Valley?
Most cracks we see come from water getting into worn joints and freezing, or from a footing that moved with the ground under it. A thin crack in an old wall is often stable and can wait, while one that's growing, wider at one end or paired with a lean needs a look soon. I'll show you which kind you have and tell you plainly if it can wait.
How much does a masonry wall or repair cost in Sun Valley, NV?
The cost comes down to the size of the job, the material and how hard the ground is to dig, so I give you a figure only after seeing your property. Here the big swings come from slope and rock, which add digging and footing work, from a retaining wall tall or loaded enough to need a permit, and from matching old brick and mortar on an older house. At the estimate I lay out what we'd do and why.
Not in Sun Valley? Ask us
We also work in the cities below, all close to Reno. If yours isn't on the list, call (775) 447-1254 and ask.
Get a Sun Valley masonry estimate
Call (775) 447-1254 or use the form, because a loose joint or a leaning wall caught early usually means a smaller repair.