Loading...
Serving Post Falls, ID and surrounding areas. (208) 981-9130
Post Falls Concrete & Masonry serves Cheney homeowners with stone masonry, chimney repair, foundation repair, and concrete work designed for the cold, high-elevation winters of the Spokane County Palouse. We respond within one business day and provide written estimates before any work starts.
Stone steps, garden walls, fireplace surrounds, and retaining features are common projects on Cheney's owner-occupied homes, where residents invest in lasting outdoor improvements that hold up through years of Palouse winters. Natural and manufactured stone both need mortar mixed and applied correctly for the cold climate - mortar that performs fine in a mild region can fail quickly here when freeze-thaw cycles hit joints that were not properly packed. See how we approach stone masonry work in this climate.
A large share of Cheney homes were built in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s - which means many chimneys have original mortar that has now endured 50 or more winters of freeze-thaw cycling. Crumbling mortar joints, damaged crowns, and missing caps are the most common problems we find on these chimneys. Left unaddressed, those gaps become pathways for water to move into the structure and down into the walls around the fireplace.
Cheney's older homes - many with full or partial basements - face compounding moisture pressure each spring when snowmelt on the Palouse plateau runs toward foundations before the still-frozen soil can absorb it. Cracks that appear small in October can let in enough water by April to cause significant interior damage. We assess, repair, and seal foundations before that moisture cycle does the real work of widening what started as a hairline.
Brick veneer on older Cheney homes and rental properties near the Eastern Washington University campus shows the same freeze-thaw wear patterns as chimney masonry. Open mortar joints look minor from the street but allow water to reach the wood framing behind the brick - creating rot and insulation damage that costs far more to fix than the tuckpointing that would have prevented it. We repoint failing joints and replace cracked or spalled brick on residential and rental properties throughout Cheney.
Cheney's elevation gives it harder winters than Spokane, and concrete surfaces here take the full force of that freeze-thaw cycle every season. Driveways on homes built in the 1990s and 2000s are now entering the age range where cracking and surface spalling become serious. We repair, resurface, and replace concrete driveways and walkways, and we install paver systems for homeowners who want a longer-lasting alternative to plain concrete.
Properties on the edges of Cheney near the newer subdivisions and along streets with natural grade changes often need retaining walls to hold slopes, define terraces, and manage drainage. Spring snowmelt on Palouse soils can move a surprising amount of material downhill in a short period - a wall without proper drainage behind it will absorb that hydrostatic pressure and eventually crack or lean.
Cheney sits at roughly 2,400 feet elevation on the Palouse plateau, which makes it colder and snowier than the Spokane metro area just 16 miles to the east. Average annual snowfall runs 40 to 50 inches, and hard freezes from November through March are the norm. Temperatures regularly drop to 20 degrees Fahrenheit or below, and the freeze-thaw cycle here is relentless - temperatures can cross the freezing point multiple times in the same week. For masonry and concrete, that cycle is more damaging than a single deep freeze and thaw. Water works its way into small cracks, freezes, expands, contracts, and then freezes again before the gap has had any chance to close. After several seasons, what started as a hairline crack in a driveway or chimney mortar joint has become a structural concern.
A large portion of Cheney's housing stock dates from the 1940s through the 1970s, built alongside the growth of Eastern Washington University. These homes are now 50 to 80 years old, and original masonry features - chimneys, brick veneer, concrete steps, and basement walls - have been through a lot of cycles. The spring melt is also a persistent problem on the Palouse: when the snowpack thaws, meltwater moves across still-frozen ground and pools near foundations before it can drain. The City of Cheney processes building permits for structural masonry work, and we handle permit applications as a standard part of every project that requires one.
Our crew works throughout Cheney regularly, pulling permits through the City of Cheney building department and working on the range of properties that make up this community - older single-family homes near downtown and the Eastern Washington University campus, newer subdivisions on the outskirts of town, and rental properties that see heavier use and often have deferred masonry maintenance. We take Highway 904, the main connector between Cheney and I-90, and know the residential streets that spread out from First Street and Simpson Parkway toward the newer growth areas west and south of downtown.
The homes nearest the EWU campus tend to be the oldest and often show the most masonry wear - chimney mortar that has never been repointed, concrete steps with decades of freeze-thaw cracking, and brick veneer that needs attention before it reaches the point of water intrusion. The newer subdivisions on Cheney's perimeter have different needs: driveways and walkways hitting the 20-year mark, and retaining walls that need drainage corrected before they lean. We also work near the Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge corridor south of town, where larger rural-residential lots have their own range of block wall and concrete needs.
Cheney is about 16 miles from downtown Spokane, and we serve both communities. If you have family or neighbors in Spokane who need masonry work, we are already running that route regularly. We also serve Airway Heights, which sits between Cheney and Spokane and is a quick detour off our regular path.
Call (208) 981-9130 or use the contact form on this site. A real person follows up within one business day to learn about your project and schedule your on-site visit.
We visit your Cheney property, assess the scope and soil conditions, and give you a written estimate with a firm price. No work starts until you have approved it in writing - so there are no surprises when the project is finished.
We apply for any required permits from the City of Cheney before starting. You receive a day-by-day schedule so you know when to expect the crew and which days, if any, require you to be present.
When work is complete, we walk through every detail with you before we leave. All debris is cleared from your property. We close out any permit inspections required by the city so your record is complete.
We serve Cheney and surrounding communities in Spokane County. Written estimates, no pressure. We reply within one business day.
(208) 981-9130Cheney is a city of about 12,000 residents in Spokane County, situated on the edge of the Palouse roughly 16 miles southwest of Spokane along Interstate 90. The city is home to Eastern Washington University, which has been the city's economic anchor since 1882 and shapes the local housing market, traffic patterns, and community character. A significant share of Cheney's housing stock was built during the mid-20th century to house faculty, staff, and the service workers who support the university. Those homes are now 50 to 80 years old and represent the core of the local masonry maintenance market. The annual Cheney community also includes newer subdivisions built on the city's outskirts since the 1990s, where homeowners are beginning to see their first round of freeze-thaw concrete and masonry repairs. Learn more about the city at the Cheney, Washington Wikipedia page.
Cheney's single-family neighborhoods range from dense in-town blocks near the university to more open residential streets on the city's perimeter, where lots are larger and outbuildings are common. Just a few miles south of town, the Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge marks the transition from developed Cheney into open Palouse country. We serve homeowners throughout Cheney and into the nearby Spokane area for all masonry and concrete work.
Build strong retaining walls that hold soil and look great for decades.
Learn MoreInstall a custom masonry fireplace that becomes the heart of your home.
Learn MoreLay precise foundation block walls that anchor your structure securely.
Learn MoreInstall handsome brick walls that define spaces and stand the test of time.
Learn MoreCall today or submit a free estimate request. We serve Cheney and all of Spokane County, and we reply within one business day - before another Palouse winter opens up another crack.