The middle floors at the corner of the red brick university building in 2019, rows of small square windows and a metal duct on the face
Case File 044

Blending Restoration Corners on an Illinois University

A restoration left a few corners of this university building in brick that did not match the walls around it. The mason on the job hired the correction in 2008. The corners were photographed again eleven years later and certified then.

Case No. 044
Structure University building
Location Illinois
Stained 2008
Re-photographed 2019
Elapsed 11 years, Silver level

2008

  1. A single-story corner of the building in 2008 with a generator set against the wall, the corner brick reading lighter and flatter than the tall wing behind it Before, 2008 View this photo larger
  2. The same single-story corner in 2019, the generator still against the wall and the brick carrying dark units through every course After, 2019 View this photo larger

What was wrong

Part of the building had been restored, and the new brick on a few corners did not match the walls around it. The file is plain about the expectation: the university knew the brick was not going to be a perfect match but thought it would be close enough. Once it was up, they wanted a closer match. The mason on the job hired the correction, on a limited budget and in a small allotment of time.

What was done

Mineral stain, brushed on brick by brick, to bring the corner units into the range of the surrounding wall. The booklet records one more step: more dark brick was added sporadically for a better looking blend, because the original wall carries dark units scattered through every course and a corner without them would still read as a patch.

2019, eleven years on

  1. The corner of a red brick university building in 2019, five floors of small square windows under rooftop ductwork and a bank of louvred plant, a lamp post and bicycle racks at the base After, 2019 View this photo larger
  2. Brick at close range in 2019 under a metal parapet cap, red and brown units in every course with dark headers scattered through them After, 2019 View this photo larger
  3. The middle floors at the corner of the building in 2019, red brick running through the corner past rows of small square windows, with a metal duct dropping down the face 11 Years After View this photo larger

What eleven years prove

In 2019 the corners were photographed again. The file records no fading, blistering, cracking or peeling over ten years later. On the certification scale that is Silver, ten years and over. As of 2026 the work is eighteen years old, and the 2019 certification is the most recent record on it.

The signed file

Every certified job gets the same form, signed once someone has gone back to the building. This is the one for case 044, transcribed beside the form page so it can be read on a phone and by a search engine.

The case study form for case 044, filled in and signed View the signed form full size
Project name
University in Illinois (2008)
Level
Silver. The scale runs Bronze at seven years and over, Silver at ten and over, Gold at fifteen and over, Platinum at twenty and over.
Hired by
The mason or contractor
Cause
Restoration
Background
"Restoration project on a few corners of this university building."
Actions taken
"Stained the brick to closely match the surrounding brick."
Detail of events
"The university knew that the brick wasn't going to be a perfect match but thought it would be close enough. Once it was up, they decided they wanted a closer match, so we were called in. With a limited budget, they asked for minor changes in a small allotment of time."
Authorized
Donald A. Foster, signed, dated 2020. Address: release permission required.
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