Skaneateles · Stone veneer

Stone Veneer for Skaneateles Houses and Entries

Stone suits a lake town, and so does restraint. The best veneer jobs here start with the old wall and, in the village, with a word to the preservation commission before the facade changes.

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No obligation
Asking for a price does not commit you. You can walk away after you hear it.
Onondaga County focus
The projects and soil notes here fit Syracuse and nearby towns.
Honest timing advice
If your job belongs in spring, we say so early.

Pallets of cut stone veneer and a sand pile staged beside a stone-skirted foundation wall

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The Masonry Services Syracuse promise

Asking for a price is free and never obliges you.
We charge you no fee for scoping or the introduction.
Your $100 credit follows the Terms, line for line.
If an introduction goes wrong, we help put it right.

The masonry falls under the contract you sign with your mason.

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When stone veneer fits a Skaneateles home

A porch front on an older village houseNew stone piers or a low stone base give the porch weight, though a historic street may call for a word with the village first.
A lake house with a plain foundationA stone skirt hides block and ties the house to the shore-side landscape.
A garage that looks newer than the houseA band of stone around the base lets a later addition sit better beside an older home.
A chimney chase wrapped in sidingA new stone or brick face on a sound frame gives a gable end a feature. It is facing, not chimney repair.

Quick answers

Questions about stone veneer in Skaneateles

Still unsure? Call (315) 640-3590 or send the short form.

Does stone on a village house need the preservation commission's say?

Only if the house is in the historic district or otherwise covered. Ask the village code office and the preservation commission before you settle on a material.

Which office issues the permit?

The Town of Skaneateles Building and Codes Department, or the village Code and Zoning Department if the address is in the village.

Can stone go over a damp foundation?

Not without finding the cause of the damp. The substrate should be dry and sound before anything is attached.

Stone veneer in Skaneateles homes

In the Town of Skaneateles, 36.6 percent of homes predate 1940, and the village core is a National Register historic district along East and West Genesee, Jordan and Fennell Streets. Before choosing stone for a street-facing wall, find out if your house is inside that district. The village has a Historical Landmarks Preservation Commission. A call before design saves a redraw.

The wall behind the stone

Behind the siding of an older frame house there can be surprises. The code requires a water-resistant barrier behind adhered veneer and a way for water to drain at the bottom, with a corrosion-resistant screed that reaches an inch below the foundation plate line. Because a leak behind stone can take months or years to show indoors, ask the contractor to photograph the barrier, lath and flashing before the stone goes on.

Claim $100 off your first job Call (315) 640-3590

Near the lake, the water table and drainage need a look too. On stud walls, adhered stone has to stay four inches above bare earth, so a wall low to the ground may need the soil pulled back. Heavy stone on a slope needs the footing and the grade checked together.

The Town of Skaneateles Building and Codes Department handles permits outside the village, and the village Code and Zoning Department handles them inside. A veneer job rarely disturbs much ground, so the lake watershed plan applies to larger site work, not a wall facing. Mention if you are also regrading.

Claim $100 off your first job Call (315) 640-3590

Have photos of the wall, including the base, ready for the contractor, and know which street you are on so the historic district question can be answered.

Basis: U.S. Census Bureau, National Park Service

Here in Skaneateles

Skaneateles has a National Register historic district along East and West Genesee Streets, and the village preservation commission discusses limits for work there.

Permit notes are on the Skaneateles page.