Removing UGLY Facade
Can anyone give me a ballpark figure for what it would take to remove this facade and make the brick underneath look presentable? I realize it depends on the condition of the underlying brickwork so a range of figures would be helpful. Has anyone done a similar job and have pointers on things to consider?…
Can anyone give me a ballpark figure for what it would take to remove this facade and make the brick underneath look presentable? I realize it depends on the condition of the underlying brickwork so a range of figures would be helpful. Has anyone done a similar job and have pointers on things to consider?
This is a house that we’re thinking of making an offer on, but that ugliness could be a dealbreaker!
Taking off facade could cost 8K.But never know what under the facade.If there is brick than need to re-pointing and power wash will make it nice.Grainding and re-pointing will about 7/8K.If you wanna macth the brownstone window sills as like the next house that will be nice with brick facade.The wooden wondow frame painted with black color is a good combination brick faceade,brownstone window sills and black window.If there is a bad shape of original facade than depents on budget you can go with stucco,brick facade or brownstone facade.make sure hire a licensed contractor with insurance and license for special rigger or pipe scafold.There will be a big defferent between licensed contractor bid and without licesend contractors bid.M.Hamid Construction Co. is a licensed contractor.You can get an idea by calling 718-633-1500 or E-mail at mdhamid@verizon.net.
Maybe find another house!
Once again, I’m so grateful that everyone took the time to think about this and to write such helpful answers. Thank you!
I’d be the first to admit that I don’t know what we’re getting ourselves into with updating the facade or indeed the rest of the house (you should see the inside!), but I guess everyone has to have a first project and this would be ours.
I think our plan would be to do basic cosmetic improvements as suggested by a number of people (awning, door, washing etc.) and then leave the heavy duty work until a time when we have enough in our budget to allow for a full overhaul if it turned out to be necessary once the facade is removed.
Also, I noticed on my second viewing of the house that the grotty bit you can see at the top of the center top window is actually the brick underneath crumbling away. So maybe we’d be looking at a bigger job rather than a smaller one…
Thanks again. I really appreciate your input.
Well, once again, I’m going to wade into this. First off, 10K is a very reasonable figure for removal, especially since the facade looks like it’s already de-laminating. But you’re not just looking at removal. The windows are going to have large gaps around them, so you’re going to want to replace them, which means not only new windows, but new interior trim, and probably framing as well. The sills look like they weren’t built out as much as the rest of the house, so that means that they applied the stucco directly to them, in which case, you’re almost certainly going to have to rebuild them. I’m assuming that you are going to want to remove that awning, so at the very least, you really should replace the bricks that the anchors were in. You’re almost certainly going to have other bricks that have been damaged to the point that you’re going to want to replace them as well. While you may not notice that the bricks are compromised from a distance, they will eventually spall and crack. With all due respect to HC, the statement that bricks are resilient is foolish at best and I certainly would not get up there with a heavy duty hammer drill and a shovel nose bit. The last thing you want to do is scarcify the brick and heavy duty hammer drills are difficult to control. Do you really want to have to go back and re-do the facade 10 years down the road? I’m sticking with my estimate of 50K. Can you do it for less? Of course, but you will end up with a job that doesn’t look as sharp as it should and it won’t last. You’ll end up regretting it down the road. And again, this is assuming that the owners put the stucco up in the first place to “moderinize” and there are no significant problems with the brick.
@NorthHeights – no underneath @135 Henry is brick (same as across the street).
I’m curious though, does anyone know any buildings in brooklyn heights that were brick and have now been covered in brownstone? i’m interested wouldnt this go against “preservation” interests?
I’d love to get a real world costs from someone who has done this.
hc,
for diy, you got ripped off for rubbish removal. $750 should cover it.
SophieNYC–
Sorry that you, or anyone else on this site looking for information, has to wade through so much blather just to get a reasonable answer. Here’s my two cents (since I’ve just received a quote for a similar job): expect to pay up around $22K for a good job that will include removing all of the material currently covering the bricks and then re-covering the bricks with a stucco or brownstone finish coat. Other posts correctly warn that the underlying brick may be damaged during the removal of the faux stone and, because of this potential damage, you may need something to go over the bricks again like the stucco-brownstone I mentioned. If “hc” is correct and there is no, or little damage, to the underlying bricks, then he/she is right that your total cost will be closer to $10K.
Very little good advice above. The $10K is reasonable, but you easily do it for less. I removed ours myself, it is surprisingly easy and don’t worry about the nay sayers the brick underneath will be fine it is a resilient material and although it will be scored with little nails and chips you won’t notice when you stand back to admire how much better the front of the house looks. Here’s the general pricing math. All that is required is a scaffold hire and a $400 (serious) hammer drill and some shovel bits from Home Depot an extension cord and a radio. I bought the scaffold for about $500 on craigslist and then sold it after the job. The facade will chip off easily and then the most expensive part of the project will be the rubbish removal, allow $2K. The actual job will take someone 2-3 days full time to get it looking good. Remember, at worst, if you chip off that ugly stick on facade and even if you painted the finished brick red, it would still add value to the house. Get into it!
Why do people pick on Minard? His information is accurate, thorough, and he knows what he is talking about. Historic restoration is his area of expertise, he is not just an armchair enthusiast. It’s a wonder he comes back to this site, but I am glad he does.