Full Exterior Masonry
Natural stone and brick veneer on custom homes and re-clads, with the flashing and weeps a snow belt wall needs.
Georgian Bay
Masonry Contractor in Collingwood
Macaworks is a masonry contractor working in Collingwood and along southern Georgian Bay. We build stone and brick on custom homes and re-clads, rebuild chimneys, repoint older brick near the downtown, and lay flagstone patios and front porches made for snow belt winters.
5.0
15 Google reviews
20+
Years laying brick and stone
Insured
Liability and WSIB coverage
Free
On-site estimates across Southern Ontario
Collingwood masonry
Stone, brick and weather on Georgian Bay.
Collingwood asks more of masonry than most towns we work in. It sits on Nottawasaga Bay at the south end of Georgian Bay, with the Niagara Escarpment and Blue Mountain behind it, and it is in the snow belt, where lake effect squalls can bury a street in a single day. Stone and brick here have to handle a lot of snow, a lot of meltwater and a long season of freezing and thawing.
Our Collingwood work is a mix: natural stone and brick on custom builds and re-clads, chimney rebuilds and tuckpointing on older homes, and flagstone patios, walkways and porches. Some are second homes that sit empty for part of the winter, so we build details that do not need anyone watching them.
Services
Masonry services in Collingwood.
Flagstone
Patios and walkways on a base deep and well drained enough to stay flat through a Georgian Bay winter.
Front Porches
Stone and flagstone entrances on newer homes, and porch rebuilds on older houses, pitched to shed meltwater.
Chimney Repairs and Rebuilds
Rebuilt tops, new crowns and flashing on chimneys that spend the winter in deep snow.
Tuckpointing
Repointing historic brick near the downtown with mortar matched to the original.
Brick and Block Masonry
Retaining walls, armour stone, piers and garages on lots with real grade toward the escarpment.
Heritage
Collingwood's downtown heritage district.
Collingwood's Downtown Heritage Conservation District, designated in 2002, was the first heritage conservation district in Canada listed on the Canadian Register of Historic Places. Its commercial blocks date mostly from 1880 to 1910, two and three storeys and primarily brick, many with patterned High Victorian brickwork, and the homes around them run from frame cottages to grand stone houses.
Designated properties, in the district or individually designated, need a heritage permit for exterior alterations. The town also runs a heritage grant program that can cover up to half of eligible costs, to a set maximum, plus a heritage tax refund, so owners of designated buildings should talk to the town before booking masonry repairs.
When we repoint or rebuild on these buildings, we use a mortar softer than the historic brick and match its colour and joint, so the repair protects the brick instead of wearing it out.
Local conditions
Building masonry for the snow belt.
Snow is the defining condition. Along the bay, Midland averages about 285 centimetres a year and Owen Sound about 330, and Collingwood sits in the same lake effect belt between them.
For a chimney that means months under snow and ice at the roof line, so crowns need a real overhang and drip edge, and flashing needs to be set into the joints rather than tarred on. For a patio or porch it means a base that drains before it freezes, and landings pitched away from the house so meltwater does not collect at the door. For a stone veneer wall it means the flashing, weep vents and air space behind the stone are built properly, because that is where snow belt water ends up.
Toward the escarpment and Blue Mountain, lots can have significant grade, which brings retaining walls and armour stone into a lot of projects.
Questions
Collingwood masonry questions.
If the property is designated, either inside the Downtown Heritage Conservation District or individually, exterior alterations need a heritage permit from the town. Talk to the town's heritage staff with your address before work is booked, and we will provide the mortar and material details they need.
The Town of Collingwood runs a heritage grant program for designated properties that can cover up to half of eligible costs, to a set maximum, as well as a heritage tax refund. Check the current terms with the town before work starts, since approval usually has to come first.
Heavy snow means more meltwater and more freezing and thawing inside the masonry. Water gets into joints, cracked crowns and poorly drained bases, freezes and opens them further. Good crowns, flashing, drainage and properly compacted bases are what let masonry last here.
Yes. We rebuild chimney tops, replace crowns, caps and flashing, and repoint stacks, ideally from spring through fall so the work is done before the next snow season.
Yes. Plenty of clients are not on site for the whole job. We agree the scope, price and schedule in writing, keep you up to date as the work goes, and leave the site clean at the end of every day.
Collingwood is about 55 kilometres from Barrie and one of our three main service areas. Nearby we also cover Wasaga Beach and Stayner, and Midland further along the bay.
Nearby
Around Collingwood.
From Collingwood we also cover Wasaga Beach and Stayner, with Midland further along the bay. All fifteen of our Google reviews are on the home page, word for word.
Free on-site estimates
Tell us what you are building.
Call or send a few details. We come out, measure, and put a fixed price and a start window in writing. Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm.