Parging Repair in Brampton
Parging is the grey coating on the part of your foundation you can see above the ground. When it cracks, peels or falls off in chunks, it's more than a looks problem. It's the outer skin protecting that concrete from water and frost. Parging repair is one of the outside jobs we do alongside foundation crack repair in Brampton.
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What is parging repair? Parging is a thin cement-based coating over the exposed part of a foundation wall. Repairing it means removing the loose, cracked or hollow parging, cleaning the wall, and applying new parging in layers so it bonds to the concrete. Any cracks in the wall underneath are sealed first.
Below: why parging fails, when a parging crack means a foundation crack, how the repair works, and what it costs.
Why does parging crack and fall off?
- Freeze and thaw. Water gets behind the parging, freezes, expands and pushes it off the wall. Every winter does a little more.
- A poor bond. Parging that went on over dirty or painted concrete, or in one thick coat, lets go sooner.
- Water from above. Soil sloping toward the house, or a downspout splashing on the wall, keeps the parging wet.
- Salt. De-icing salt splashed from the driveway or walkway breaks it down faster.
- Knocks. Lawnmowers, snow shovels and trimmers chip away at the bottom edge.
Is a crack in the parging a foundation crack?
Sometimes. Parging is thin, so a crack in the wall behind it often shows through. If a crack in the parging lines up with a crack on the inside of the basement wall, it's a foundation crack, and that gets repaired first. See exterior foundation crack repair.
If the parging is cracked in a random web pattern and the wall inside is fine, it's usually just the coating.
How do we repair parging?
- Sound it out. We tap the wall to find parging that's hollow behind, not just the pieces that have already fallen.
- Remove the loose parging. Anything that isn't firmly bonded comes off.
- Clean the wall. Dust and loose material are removed so the new coat can grip.
- Fix what's underneath. Cracks in the concrete are sealed before new parging goes over them.
- Apply new parging in coats. A bonding coat, then the finish coat, kept damp while it cures so it doesn't dry too fast and crack.
- Fix the cause. Soil sloping toward the wall, or a downspout splashing on it, gets corrected so the new parging lasts.
Cement-based parging can't go on in freezing weather, so it's a spring-to-fall job.
Our parging work carries a 1-year warranty on workmanship.
Why not just paint over it?
Paint over cracked parging traps water behind it and hides the problem for a season. The next winter pushes it off again, paint and all.
What does parging repair cost?
We haven't found a reliable published price range for Ontario. Small patches cost far less than re-parging a whole side of the house, and most contractors have a minimum charge for small jobs. The price depends on the area, how much old parging has to come off, and whether cracks underneath need repair.
Our price: $250 minimum, then $6 to $10 per square foot, plus HST. Foundation crack prices are in foundation crack repair cost in Ontario.