Parging in Newmarket
We re-parge the exposed foundation band on Newmarket homes: the grey strip of mortar above grade that cracks, sounds hollow and comes off in sheets. Before the new coat goes on, we sound the wall and check whether the failure is the bond, the weather or water coming from behind. The quote is free and written, and the labour carries a lifetime warranty.
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Reviewed June 2026
Every job is priced individually, not off a price list. Tell us about yours and you get an accurate, no-pressure quote in writing.
Newmarket has two ages of housing. The blocks around historic Main Street and Fairy Lake hold the oldest stock in town, many with original foundations and parging that has started to let go. Newer surveys such as Stonehaven-Wyndham, Glenway Estates, Summerhill and Woodland Hill sit further out.
The ground changes across town too. The southern edge sits on Oak Ridges Moraine sand and gravel that drains fast, while the lower north and west sit on heavy clay till that holds melt against a foundation wall. A parged wall has to take the weather on either.
The full method, from bonding agent to coat thickness to mesh, is on our parging page. This page is about what parging problems look like in Newmarket, and what we check so the new coat lasts.
Why parging comes off Newmarket foundations
Parging is a sacrificial skin. It takes the weather and the road salt so the wall behind it does not have to. Once it lets go, freeze-thaw works directly on the block or stone behind it.
On the older homes near Main Street, an old coat often goes a patch at a time: hollow when you tap it, grey flakes in the garden bed, bare wall where it has already gone. Painting over it seals moisture in and speeds the failure where you cannot see it.
How we re-parge an older wall
We sound the whole exposed band and strip every hollow or loose patch back to solid material, then clean off dust and old paint. The wall is dampened and given a bonding agent, because fresh mortar will not hold a dry, dirty face on its own. Fibreglass mesh goes over patches, filled voids and changes in material.
The coat goes on a quarter to three-eighths of an inch thick, in two passes on a rough wall. On the oldest homes, parging and a foundation check tend to go together, so we look at cracks and water behind the coat before the new one goes on.
Clay, sand and the low ground by the Holland River
Where clay till holds melt against the wall, water gets behind the coat and freezes. Toward the Holland River the land drops to old lowland with a high water table after the spring melt, and basements there stay damp long after the snow goes.
Parging sheds weather above grade. It is not waterproofing, and it does not stop water that comes in below grade. If your basement takes water every spring, that is a separate problem from the parging coat. See our basement waterproofing page. We tell you which problem you have before you spend.
Newer surveys
On newer lots, a cracked or chipped coat is best looked at early, before water gets behind it. If a crack keeps reopening through fresh parging, the wall behind it needs a look first, because parging over a moving wall only hides the problem. Our foundation repair page covers that.
Getting a crew to Newmarket
Newmarket is a long haul up from our home routes, reached by the 400 and 404, so jobs here book into planned trips north and get a real date rather than a same-day truck.
Straight answers
My parging near Main Street is flaking off. Can you fix it?
Yes. After decades of freeze-thaw the coat loses its bond and sheds in sheets. We chip back what has failed, sort out any cracking or water behind it first, then re-coat so the wall sheds water again instead of soaking it up.
Can I just paint over the crumbling parging?
No. Paint seals moisture inside the wall, the next freeze works under the coat, and the crumbling speeds up where you cannot see it. All of it then has to come off before new mortar will bond.
Our basement near the Holland River is damp every spring. Will new parging fix it?
Not on its own. Parging protects the wall above grade; it does not stop water coming in below grade. Toward the river the water table climbs after the melt. We tell you which problem you have at the free visit.
What does parging cost in Newmarket?
There is no honest flat rate, because the cost is mostly prep. The height and length of the exposed band, how much old coat or paint has to come off, whether the wall needs two passes and mesh, and access around the house all move it. The visit and the written quote are free, and the number on the quote is the number on the invoice unless you change the job.
Keep reading
- Parging across Southern OntarioThe full method: prep, bonding agent, coat thickness, mesh and the cure window.
- Concrete Contractors in NewmarketEverything else we pour and repair in Newmarket, from heritage repairs to new-survey driveways.
- Basement WaterproofingWater coming in below grade needs a waterproofing fix; parging protects the wall above grade.
- Concrete Repair in NewmarketSettled steps and other repairs on the older homes around Main Street.
Tell us about the job.
Send the details and we'll get back to you within one business day with next steps. If water is coming in right now, check the box and we flag it urgent.
Get a straight quote
Free · no pressure · 1 business day