temporary stabilization of brownstone facade

Hi While I am fairly familiar with the processes and materials used for repairing and replacing brownstone facades (multiple coat concrete methods, etc), I am curious if there are methods to temporarily stabilize brownstone facade elements pending these more permanent repairs. The facade decorative elements around doors and windows tend to deteriorate and crumble first, well in advance of the the flatter parts of the brownstone facade. Most likely this is because of their greater exposure to the elements (they tend to collect rain, snow, and ice) and greater inherent weakness to begin with. What seems to happen is that as these elements begin to deteriorate their surface wears away making them even more prone to absorb moisture and water rather than shedding it; the freeze / thaw cycle then induces greater deterioration and the process of disintegration accelerates significantly. I have personally observed this. While a thorough patching or a complete repair / replacement of the facade is no doubt the ultimate answer, what I would like to be able to do and what I think might be useful is to stabilize the elements that are experiencing the most deterioration until major repairs could be undertaken. One would think that by appropriate sealing of the surface to prevent excess moisture penetration, as well as physical stabilizing the surface (to reduce crumbling or chipping) the overall rate of deterioration could be significantly reduced. Perhaps there is some kind of penetrating sealer or other repair material / technique that would work for this purpose and I am wondering if anyone has experience doing this.

kensny

in Facade and Brownstone Repair 11 years and 7 months ago

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kensny | 11 years and 7 months ago

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Thanks all for your replies. The purpose of “stabilzing” the brownstone would be to enable me to postpone redoing the entire facade, which is the ultimate solution, for a number of years until I can afford it. $50-75K for the building in question. During that time the rate of deterioration (crumbling of decorative elements) and its unsightly results would I hope decrease. I have identified a product that claims to be able to do this but want to investigate it further before reporting on it.

metalwork | 11 years and 7 months ago

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P.S. Let him know sherwin from core solutions gave you his number. he would be very easy on the pricing

metalwork | 11 years and 7 months ago

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you can contact my brownstone guy, is is an expert when it comes to brownstone work and he gives you a great warranty Marlon 1347 493 2546\. if you ever need Historic metalwork done feel free to give me a call, my card is attached.

yurigmusha71 | 11 years and 7 months ago

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contact mr luis luisenrique0571_62@hotmail.com

NeoGrec | 11 years and 7 months ago

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I’m not sure what the purpose of “stabilizing” the facade would be since when a brownstone facade is re-done the work is so radical everything is removed. The contractor chips off at least 3-4 inches of the existing, deteriorated surface and recreates all the decorative ornamentation. It’s impossible to save any of the original detail. Patching looks lousy and is frankly a waste of money. I guess if you’re experiencing water penetration, applying a layer of thorocoat could solve that for the short term (much as people hate it). Otherwise I’d just wait until you can afford a complete replacement. Donald Morgan did ours 3 years ago. He’s under the radar with no website but does great work. We paid $28,000 for a 3-story bay fronted house with ample detail. You can reach him on 646-797-1053.

BobMarvin | 11 years and 7 months ago

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I’m no expert, but I’d think that any surface sealing might actually hasten deterioration by trapping any moisture that happens to get in.