Window & Door Lintel Repair in Ottawa

The lintel is the horizontal support that carries the brick or stone above a window or door opening. In many Ottawa homes these are steel angle lintels, and over the decades they rust and expand. That expansion, called rust jacking, pushes the brick apart, cracks mortar joints, and lets water into the wall.

If you see cracking, sagging, or rust stains above a window or door, the lintel is often the cause. We replace failing lintels and restore the masonry so the opening is solid and weather tight again.

Key Takeaways

• A lintel supports the masonry above a window or door opening.
• Rusting steel lintels expand and crack the brickwork above them.
• Warning signs include cracks, sagging brick, and rust stains above openings.
• Ignoring a failing lintel leads to water damage and bigger repairs.
• We replace the lintel and rebuild the surrounding brick or stone properly.

Signs Your Lintel Is Failing

• Cracks in the brick or mortar directly above a window or door
• Rust stains bleeding down the masonry
• Brick that looks like it is sagging or stepping down
• Gaps opening at the top corners of an opening
• Water infiltration around windows and doors

How We Replace a Lintel

We carefully support and remove the brick above the opening, take out the corroded lintel, and install a new, properly sized and protected steel lintel. Then we rebuild the masonry, match the mortar, and re point as needed. This often pairs with tuckpointing and brick repairs.

Why Act Early

A lintel problem does not fix itself, and it gets more expensive the longer it waits. Catching it early usually means a straightforward lintel replacement rather than a large rebuild. See our full masonry services.

Frequently Asked Questions