A two-story red brick house in 2019, its arched brick entry set between tall windows under a steep gable
Case File 053

Matching the Entry Pillars on an Illinois Two Story Home

The brick at the foot of the two pillars carrying this front entry did not match the house around it. The mason who laid it hired the correction in 2003. It was photographed again sixteen years later and certified then.

Case No. 053
Structure Two-story house
Location Illinois
Stained July 2003
Re-photographed 2019
Elapsed 16 years, Gold level

2003

  1. The arched front entry in 2003, the two brick pillars carrying the arch running a pale orange red with cream mortar joints, the ground around them still bare soil Before, 2003 View this photo larger
  2. The same entry in 2003 from further back, the brick low on both pillars now a deeper red brown that carries across into the house wall beside them After, 2003 View this photo larger

What was wrong

The brick at the bottom of the two pillars did not sit in the same range as the wall behind them. Nothing had failed and nothing was dirty; the issue line records only what the owner asked for, a better match.

The Hired by line reads mason or contractor, so the trade that laid the brick paid for the correction.

What was done

Mineral stain, brushed on by hand, unit by unit. The file records one hundred percent of the brick in that area stained, so the pillars were carried into the range of the brick beside them rather than covered in one flat color.

2019, sixteen years on

  1. The whole front of the house from the driveway in 2019, the arched entry in the middle and a covered porch and balcony to the right, all in one red brick range 16 Years After View this photo larger
  2. The arched entry and its outside pillar in 2019, the brick one even red range from the planting bed at the ground to the windows above After, 2019 View this photo larger
  3. The house in 2019 seen through the trees along the front boundary, the red brick running unbroken from the gable down to the arched entry 2019 View this photo larger

What sixteen years prove

Same entry, same two pillars, and a match that is still a match. The mark on the file is Gold, which covers fifteen years and over on the certification scale. As of 2026 the work is twenty-three years old, and the 2019 certification is the most recent record on it.

The signed file

Every certified job gets the same form, signed on the day someone goes back to the building. This is the one for case 053, transcribed beside the scan so it can be read on a phone and by a search engine.

The case study form for case 053, filled in and signed View the signed form full size
Project name
Illinois Residence (2003)
Level
Gold. The scale runs Bronze at seven to nine years, Silver at ten and over, Gold at fifteen and over, Platinum at twenty and over.
Hired by
Mason or contractor
Reason for project
Other
Issue
"The homeowner wanted a better match."
What was corrected
"We stained 100% of the brick in the area."
Storyline
"We stained the bottom of both pillars, 16 years later it still looks great today!"
Authorized
Donald A. Foster, signed, dated 2019
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