# Foundation, Stoop and Brick Repair in Harrison, NJ

> Foundation, basement wall, stoop and brick repair for Harrison's older two- and three-family houses, including blocks flooded in Sandy. Send photos.

URL: https://truecoursemasonrynewark.com/service-areas/harrison/

[True Course Masonry Newark](https://truecoursemasonrynewark.com/) repairs foundations, basement walls, stoops and brick in Harrison, through licensed and insured contractors and on jobs of every size, across the Passaic from Newark's Ironbound. Harrison's older neighborhoods are built of two- and three-family houses on narrow lots, and many of them sit on blocks that flooded in Hurricane Sandy. For those houses, the masonry question that matters most is usually below the first floor.

## Older two- and three-family houses on narrow lots

Harrison's own planning documents describe a town of multi-family houses. The 2017 master plan reexamination, citing American Community Survey figures for 2009 to 2013, found 38.1% of housing units in two-unit buildings and 23.7% in buildings of three or four units, 61.8% together, with only 9.6% single-family detached and 53.5% of units built before 1960. The 2007 master plan, using the 2000 Census, put the median year built at 1952. Newer waterfront apartment buildings have since added many units, which changes the citywide averages more than the older blocks themselves.

On a two- or three-family house, one foundation, one front stoop and one set of exterior walls serve every household, and narrow side yards limit how the walls can be reached. Those two facts shape most Harrison masonry jobs: the work affects more than one family, and access often decides the method.

## Sandy, basements and foundation walls

The 2017 reexamination records that over 200 people were evacuated during Hurricane Sandy and that 109 single-family homes were damaged by floodwater, and it quotes the county hazard plan on water entering the basements and ground floors of multi-family buildings near the Passaic. The Observer reported in November 2012 that storm drains backed up into basements and first floors on Warren, Sussex and Bergen Streets and off First Street. New FEMA maps in 2017 enlarged Harrison's flood zone and raised base flood elevations, with most of the zone inside the waterfront redevelopment area.

Masonry that stands in water absorbs it. As a brick or block foundation dries, salts come to the surface as white bloom, which the [guide to efflorescence](https://truecoursemasonrynewark.com/guide/efflorescence-on-brick/) explains, and paint on the wall lifts and flakes. Mortar that was soft to begin with washes out of the lowest joints. Coating the wall to hide that usually makes it worse, as the [guide to sealing brick](https://truecoursemasonrynewark.com/guide/should-you-seal-brick/) explains, because the coating holds water in. The repair order is to find the water source, let the wall dry, cut out and repoint failed joints, replace damaged brick and only then decide on any finish.

Cracks need reading before patching. A diagonal stair-step crack in a brick foundation, covered in the [guide to stair-step cracks](https://truecoursemasonrynewark.com/guide/stair-step-cracks-in-brick/), can be old and stable or a sign of ongoing settlement, and the [guide to when a crack needs an engineer](https://truecoursemasonrynewark.com/guide/when-a-masonry-crack-needs-an-engineer/) sets out when to bring one in first.

## Painted and parged foundation walls

Many older Harrison foundations have been painted or covered with a thin coat of cement parging along the street side, often more than once. Paint and parging hide the brick and joints underneath, which makes a wall look tidier but also hides what is happening inside it. When paint bubbles and flakes at the base, or parging cracks and falls away in sheets, water and salts are usually moving through the wall behind it.

The repair starts by removing loose coating to see the brick or block, checking how far the joints have failed and whether units have cracked or crumbled, then repointing and replacing what needs it. Whether to re-coat afterward, and with what, depends on how damp the wall stays. A breathable finish, or none at all, generally outlasts a hard waterproof paint on an old masonry foundation that will always see some ground moisture.

## Services for Harrison houses

[Masonry repair](https://truecoursemasonrynewark.com/masonry-repair/) is the starting point for foundation and basement walls where the cause is not yet clear. [Brick pointing](https://truecoursemasonrynewark.com/brick-pointing/) and [brick repair](https://truecoursemasonrynewark.com/brick-repair/) cover joints and damaged units on foundations and walls, and [block wall repair](https://truecoursemasonrynewark.com/block-wall-repair/) handles concrete block foundations and garage walls. [Stoop repair](https://truecoursemasonrynewark.com/stoop-repair/) covers the brick and stone front steps that serve both or all units.

On Harrison Avenue's older mixed-use buildings, the town's 2007 urban design guidance encouraged traditional materials such as red brick and discouraged covering facades with veneers; [commercial masonry repair](https://truecoursemasonrynewark.com/commercial-masonry-repair/) covers storefront and apartment buildings.

## No local historic review

Harrison's 2007 master plan found the state-recognized historic resources in town were all public or railroad facilities, with no historic districts of privately owned property and no individual privately owned buildings identified, and the 2017 reexamination said formal historic preservation was not a major priority. Some redevelopment plans, such as the one for the former General Electric and RCA brick buildings, set their own facade rules for those sites. For a house, the repair standard is the owner's to set.

## How a Harrison job is planned

A first look records the foundation material, joint condition, paint or coatings, signs of past water, cracks and movement, the stoop and the reach along each side of the house, and which households use each entry. Permits come from the Construction and Engineering office at 401 Warren Street; N.J.A.C. 5:23-2.14 requires a permit to repair or reconstruct a structure unless an exception applies. New Jersey requires home improvement contracts over $500 to be in writing with the contractor's registration number. Owners nearby can also see the [Kearny](https://truecoursemasonrynewark.com/service-areas/kearny/), [Ironbound](https://truecoursemasonrynewark.com/service-areas/ironbound/) and [Belleville](https://truecoursemasonrynewark.com/service-areas/belleville/) pages.

## Frequently asked questions

### My Harrison basement took water in Sandy. What masonry problems does that leave behind?

Foundation walls that stood in water absorb it, and as they dry, salts move to the surface and show as white bloom or flaking paint. Mortar that was already soft can wash out of the lowest joints, and cracks can open at corners and around basement windows. A first look checks how high water reached, whether the wall has dried and whether anything has moved before any repointing or patching is planned.

### Should I seal or paint a damp brick foundation wall?

Usually not as a first step. A coating on the outside or inside of a damp brick or block foundation can trap moisture in the wall, and the paint or coating then peels as salts push it off. Finding where the water comes from, repointing open joints and dealing with grading or drainage generally come first. The guide to sealing brick explains when a breathable treatment can make sense.

### Does Harrison have historic review for exterior masonry on houses?

No. Harrison's 2007 master plan found no historic districts of privately owned property and no individual privately owned buildings recognized by the state, and its 2017 reexamination said formal historic preservation was not a major town priority. Some redevelopment areas, such as the former RCA buildings, carry their own facade rules, but those apply to those sites, not to houses.

### Is a crack in my foundation wall a masonry repair or a structural problem?

It depends on the crack. Hairline cracks and open mortar joints with no movement are usually repointing and crack repair. A crack that is wide, wider at one end, has shifted out of plane, or is paired with sticking doors and sloping floors can point to settlement, which may need an engineer before masonry repair. Photos of the crack with a coin or ruler for scale help sort this out early.

### Who issues masonry permits in Harrison?

Harrison's Construction and Engineering office at 401 Warren Street. N.J.A.C. 5:23-2.14 requires a permit to repair or reconstruct a structure unless an exception applies. Whether repointing or a small foundation repair needs a permit is confirmed with the office for the address.