Jeff Somers is a freelancer who has been writing about writing, books, personal finance, and home maintenance since 2012. When not writing, Jeff spends his free time fixing up his old house. He has ...

Q: You have written about spalling or flaking bricks and why they’re that way. You said a cap of stone, wood or metal is needed to keep rain and snow out. Would you please explain what kind of cap you ...

Q: I have brick walls in my courtyard and every year a few more bricks “go bad.”The facing comes off. I paid a man hundreds of dollars to solve the problem. He sprayed the walls but it did not help. I ...

All brick walls, old and new, are susceptible to deterioration. Exposure to harsh weather, poor construction, and lack of maintenance can all lead to the failure of brick structures. The key to ...