Stone masonry in Redondo Beach CA - stone walls and veneer built to keep water out
Loose stones, white streaks or a bare wall you want faced in stone? We plan for water and weight first, so the work holds up.
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What goes into a stone wall or stone veneer job in Redondo Beach?
Stone masonry in Redondo Beach covers walls built from stone, like garden and retaining walls, and natural stone veneer, a stone face held to an existing wall with mortar. Done well, it gives your house or yard stone that stays tight to the wall and sheds water.
We're based in Redondo Beach and work across the cities around it, and most stone calls start with someone who wants a new wall, a stone face on a plain one, or a fix for stone that's loosening or staining. The price moves with the size of the wall, the stone you pick, how much prep the wall or base behind it needs and how high it goes. The schedule depends mostly on whether the job needs a permit and, on a tall wall, the design work that comes first. I'll give you your own figure once I've seen the job, and if you only want stone on an existing wall, our page on stone veneer installation goes into that in more detail.
How can you tell your stone wall needs attention?
Loose or shifting stones
A stone that rocks when you press it, or joints that have cracked open, usually means the mortar has let go or water has worked in behind it. Left alone, more water gets in every time it rains and the stones around it start to loosen too.
Heavy white streaks under joints
Thick white streaks running down from a mortar joint mean water got into the wall somewhere higher up and is leaving salt behind as it dries. Waiting lets that water keep moving through the wall, so it's worth finding where it gets in while the problem is still small.
White crust near the ground
On a retaining wall or any stone that sits against soil, a white crust low on the face often comes from ground water soaking in and carrying salts with it. Those salts can rise well up the wall, so the stain tends to climb if the water keeps coming.
How we do stone masonry, start to finish
Keeping water out from behind the stone is the first thing we plan, because water that gets behind it is what usually loosens stone and stains it. On an indoor feature wall, we check that what's behind it can carry the weight before we set a single piece. Once that's settled, our crew preps the base or the wall, sets each stone in mortar, packs and shapes the joints so they shed water, and cleans the face before we leave.
If your stone ties into older brick, we usually look at the joints beside it too, and brick pointing refills worn mortar there before water finds its way across. When a stone wall or veneer would sit on a slab or footing that's cracked or settling, we sort that out first with foundation repair, because stone set on a moving base cracks right along with it.
Stone walls in the yard
Garden walls, borders and retaining walls built from solid stone suit a yard with a slope or a space you want to mark off. A retaining wall sits against soil, so we plan how water drains behind it before the first course goes down.
Stone veneer outside
Natural stone veneer is a stone face bonded with mortar onto a block or framed wall, and it suits a house front, a planter or a plain wall you'd like to dress up. You get the look of stone without building a full stone wall.
Indoor feature walls
A stone fireplace surround or accent wall suits a room that needs one strong focal point. Natural stone is heavy and plain drywall can't hold it directly, so the wall behind it often needs a stronger backing first.
Sealed or natural stone
Sealed stone can be easier to clean, but the sealer has to be put back on from time to time, especially outdoors, and it can change the stone's natural color. I lean toward leaving most outdoor walls natural unless easy cleaning matters more to you than the upkeep.
Get a free on-site estimate for your stone project
Send the form or call, and we'll reply within one business day to set a time. I'll come out, look at the wall, answer your questions and give you a free estimate, with no obligation to go ahead.
Call (424) 265-1368What happens when you call us about stone work in Redondo Beach?
Here's how a stone job runs from your first call to the finished wall, and who you'll be dealing with at each step.
Call or send the form
Tell us where the wall is and what you have in mind, and send photos if you can. We get back to you to set a time for me to come out.
I look at the wall myself
I check where water could get in and what's behind the stone or the spot where it'll go, and I answer whatever you want to ask. You leave with an estimate for your wall, so you know the cost and what we'd do before you decide anything.
We sort out the permit
If you go ahead, we work through the permit steps with your city or county office before anything gets built. That way the paperwork is settled and you aren't chasing it yourself.
Our crew builds, I check
Our crew does the work with me checking it as it goes, so the water details and the backing are right before stone covers them up. When the stone's set, we clean up and go over any care it needs.
Why Redondo Beach homeowners call CJ Redondo Beach Concrete & Masonry for stone work
*Stone holds up when the water and the weight are planned before the first piece goes on. Call or send the form and I'll come take a look.*
The owner comes out himself
We're based in Redondo Beach, and I come out myself to look at your wall and give the estimate, then check our crew's work on site as it goes. The person who priced your job is the one watching it get built.
In business since 2017
I grew up mixing mortar for my uncle, spent years in other work, and came back to start this business in 2017. That time away taught me to slow down and explain each step before we start, and no question is too small to ask me.
Licensed and fully insured
We're licensed and fully insured, and I'm glad to go over both when I come out. It's one of the first things worth checking with anyone who'll be working on your house.
Repairs that suit the wall
When we fix stone, we match the repair to the wall it's going into rather than reaching for the hardest mix or the fastest job. A fix that's too hard or too rushed can do more harm than the wear it replaced.
Stone masonry, permits and the work around it in Redondo Beach
In Redondo Beach, the city's Building Division issues permits for work on private property, and Building & Safety is the office that says whether your stone project needs one. That depends on the job, so we check with them before work starts and take care of the permit when it's needed. A permitted project there also comes with a waste management plan, and the city takes every application, plan and document online through its Citizen Portal, so we put that together rather than leaving it with you.
A lot of the stone calls we get around here are garden and retaining walls in back yards, stone faces on plain block walls and fireplaces or feature walls inside. We do the same work on jobs in Torrance and Hermosa Beach, and there the permit question goes to that city's own office.
Questions about stone masonry in Redondo Beach
How do I find out if my stone project needs a permit in Redondo Beach?
Call the city's Building & Safety office at (310) 318-0636, because they're the ones who decide whether your project needs a permit. If you'd rather not make that call, we check with them before any stone job we do there.
Why does stone veneer fail?
Water getting into the wall is the most common reason adhered veneer, the thin stone bonded onto a wall, fails, according to one stone veneer maker. That same maker suggests asking any installer how they'll keep water out of the wall before you hire them.
Is white powder on my stone wall a problem?
Not for the wall's strength. White powder, called efflorescence, is a salt deposit that can look bad but won't make the masonry weaker. If it keeps coming back, it's worth finding where the water is getting in.
What does masonry work cost in the Los Angeles area?
Brick and masonry work in the Los Angeles area usually costs about $11 to $34 per square foot. That's a broad figure for masonry in general, not a price for your wall. I'll give you your own number once I've looked at the job.
What is the best way to plan a tall stone wall?
Plan on a design step before anything gets built. One veneer maker's guidelines say multi-story installations, high walls and other engineered work need design by a registered design professional, such as an architect or engineer, so a tall wall takes longer to get started than a low garden wall.
How long does natural stone need to cure before it can be sealed?
On inside work, usually about four weeks. One stone supplier's guide says to seal only after the work has thoroughly cured, so sealing comes later, not the day the stone goes up.
Other work that often goes with stone
- Brick pointing
Worth a look when stone sits beside old brick with sandy, gapped joints, since refilling those joints keeps water from soaking through the brick next door.
- Foundation repair
If cracks keep showing up in a wall or slab that new stone would sit on, fixing the base first saves the stone from cracking along with it.
Service areas for our stone masonry work
CJ Redondo Beach Concrete & Masonry is based in Redondo Beach, California, and works across the cities around it. These are the 12 cities with their own page, including Manhattan Beach and Palos Verdes Estates, though they aren't the only places we work.
Redondo Beach, CA
Tell us about the stone wall you want
Call (424) 265-1368 or send the form with where the wall is, whether it's inside or out, a rough size and photos of any white streaks, and I'll come out ready to talk about your wall.