Historic and commercial facade waterproofing
Facade restoration and waterproofing on a commercial or historic building in downtown Scranton or Wilkes-Barre runs $25 to $60 per square foot of wall, quoted per building after a lift inspection. The range covers repointing in lime mortar, resetting or replacing spalled brick, stone and terra cotta, rebuilding parapet copings and lintels, and a final breathable treatment. Downtown Scranton's Lackawanna Avenue and Courthouse Square blocks, Wilkes-Barre's Public Square and River Street, and Carbondale's Main Street carry three and four story load-bearing masonry from 1880 to 1930, most of it with parapets and cornices that have been letting water into the wall for decades. On those buildings the parapet and the coping are where most of the water enters, and that is where an honest scope starts, not with a coat of sealer on the storefront.
Part of the Anthracite Masonry Waterproofing service list for Scranton. Full ranges on the cost guide.
What you are probably seeing
- ■Efflorescence or spalling on the upper floors below the parapet
- ■Displaced or cracked coping stones on the parapet
- ■Rust-jacked steel lintels lifting the brick above windows
- ■Terra cotta or cast stone with cracks and rust staining at anchors
- ■Interior plaster damage on the top floor along the front wall
- ■Sidewalk-side spalling from years of de-icing salt splash
Parapets, copings, and lintels first
Load-bearing masonry buildings from Scranton's boom decades were built without cavity walls or through-wall flashing. The wall is solid and it stays dry by shedding water at the top and letting the rest evaporate. When the parapet coping cracks or the mortar at the roof line fails, water enters at the top of the wall and works down through three floors of brick before anyone sees it. Steel lintels over the windows rust, expand, and lift the courses above them. Terra cotta ornament, common on the 1900 to 1930 buildings downtown, cracks at the anchors when those rust.
A scope that starts at the top and works down solves the source. A scope that starts with sealer on the ground floor storefront treats the symptom.
Working in a historic district
Downtown Scranton and much of Carbondale and Wilkes-Barre's river district are in designated historic areas, and exterior work on contributing buildings goes through local review. We prepare the submission: mortar analysis and match, unit-for-unit replacement specs for brick and stone, and a treatment plan that follows the National Park Service preservation briefs on repointing and water-repellent coatings. Lifts and sidewalk protection are part of the quote so the building stays open through the work.
How the job runs
- 1
Lift inspection and photo survey
Every elevation photographed from a lift, with parapet, coping, lintel and ornament conditions logged floor by floor.
- 2
Scope from the top down
Coping, parapet and roof-line repairs scoped first, then lintels, then field repointing and unit replacement.
- 3
Historic review package
Mortar analysis, material specs and treatment plan prepared for the local historic review when the building is contributing.
- 4
Restore and treat
Repoint in matched mortar, reset or replace units, rebuild copings, then a breathable repellent on the cured wall.
What this work costs in Scranton
| Job type | Typical range | What moves the price |
|---|---|---|
| Exterior brick and stone sealing (silane/siloxane penetrating repellent) | $1,200 to $4,000per house ($2 to $5 per sq ft) | Wall area, how much repointing has to happen first, two-story access, soft coal-era brick that drinks more product |
| Repointing and tuckpointing | $1,500 to $6,000per job ($10 to $25 per sq ft) | Joint depth, lime mortar matching on pre-1930 walls, scaffold height, how much loose brick has to be reset |
| Historic and commercial facade restoration and waterproofing | $25 to $60per sq ft, quoted per building | Lift or scaffold, stone versus brick, terra cotta or lintel replacement, sidewalk protection, historic district review |
Every job type with what moves it is on the cost guide.
Questions about historic and commercial facade waterproofing
- How much does commercial facade restoration cost per square foot?
- $25 to $60 per square foot of wall on the buildings downtown, quoted per building after a lift inspection. Field repointing and treatment sits at the low end. Terra cotta, lintel replacement and full parapet rebuilds push toward the top.
- Do you handle historic district approvals?
- Yes. We prepare the mortar analysis, material specifications and treatment plan for the local review board and attend the hearing when the owner wants us there.
- Can the building stay open during the work?
- Almost always. Sidewalk protection, lift scheduling around business hours and floor-by-floor sequencing are built into the quote.
- Why not just seal the whole building?
- Because on a solid masonry building most water enters at the parapet and copings, and a sealer on the field brick does nothing about that. Fix the top, repoint, then treat the wall. In that order it lasts.
Get a written price
Address first, then what you see. We call back with the range and a time for the hose test. Or call (570) 909-2820.