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Serving Chino Hills, CA and surrounding areas. (909) 834-5289
Premier Chino Hills Masonry provides masonry contractor services throughout Upland, CA, including fireplace installation, retaining walls, driveway pavers, and brick repair. We have served the Inland Empire since 2016 and work regularly in Upland neighborhoods from Euclid Avenue to the foothills - every estimate is free and in writing before any work begins.
Upland sits at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains, and winter nights here drop well below 40 degrees - cold enough that a fireplace is a genuine comfort feature, not just a cosmetic one. Whether you want a full masonry build in a 1960s ranch home or a stone surround around a gas insert in a newer foothills property, our fireplace installation service covers design, permit, and build from the footing up.
Properties in north Upland, closer to the foothills, frequently have sloped lots where the grade drops from the back of the house toward the street or neighboring property. Without a properly engineered retaining wall, that grade change accelerates soil erosion and pushes water toward the foundation during winter rains. Upland clay soils hold water and exert serious lateral pressure when saturated - a wall built here needs drainage designed in from the start.
Upland is known as the "City of Gracious Living," and the older neighborhoods near Euclid Avenue have large, mature trees whose roots have had 50 to 70 years to work their way under existing walkways. Lifting slabs and tripping hazards are common throughout these neighborhoods, and new walkway construction with a root barrier and a properly prepared base prevents the same damage from recurring in another generation of growth.
Many block wall fences in Upland date from the 1960s and 1970s and are now 50 to 60 years old - well past the point where cap blocks, mortar joints, and footings are still performing as designed. Upland summers regularly push past 100 degrees, which dries mortar fast and opens the surface to moisture intrusion during the winter rains that follow. Walls in this condition typically lean at the midpoint or show horizontal cracking, both signs that a rebuild rather than a patch is the right call.
The clay soil beneath most Upland driveways expands in wet winters and contracts in dry summers, and that seasonal movement cracks concrete slabs from below regardless of how well they were originally poured. A paver system installed on a properly compacted granular base accommodates that movement without cracking - individual pavers shift slightly rather than fracturing the way a solid slab does, and cracked sections can be lifted and reset without tearing out the whole driveway.
Brick chimneys, block wall caps, and decorative brick features on Upland homes from the 1950s through the 1970s have mortar joints that have been weathering through decades of Inland Empire heat and Santa Ana winds. Mortar that has recessed or crumbled back from the brick face lets water sit at the joint line, and once water gets in and freezes on a cold winter night, the brick face begins to spall. Tuckpointing removes the failed material and fills the joint before that cycle can do deeper damage.
A large portion of Upland was built between the 1950s and the 1970s, which means many homes in the city are now 50 to 70 years old. That housing stock was well-built for its era, but original concrete flatwork, brick chimneys, and block wall fences from that period are now well into the range where significant maintenance or replacement is overdue. The clay soils throughout this part of San Bernardino County behave the same way they do across the broader Inland Empire - they swell in wet winters and shrink in dry summers, and that repeated movement is the primary driver of cracked driveways, failing retaining walls, and separated masonry joints on older Upland properties.
The northern part of Upland, closest to the San Gabriel Mountains, runs cooler in winter and warmer in summer than the southern end of the city - frost is common there from December through February, and the freeze-thaw cycle adds stress to concrete and masonry that the milder southern neighborhoods experience less often. Upland also sits directly in the path of Santa Ana wind events, which can gust past 50 mph in fall and winter. According to the National Weather Service at NWS Los Angeles, these events are most intense in Inland Empire communities near the mountain passes - which includes the Upland foothills. Aging mortar joints and freestanding masonry walls are especially vulnerable during high-wind periods.
Our crew works throughout Upland regularly, and we understand the local conditions that affect masonry work here. We pull permits through the City of Upland Building and Safety Division for structural projects - fireplace construction, retaining walls above 4 feet, and block wall fences over certain heights all require permits in Upland, and we handle the application and coordinate inspections so you are not navigating that process yourself.
Upland has a strong residential identity built around its older, tree-lined neighborhoods. Euclid Avenue - one of the widest and most recognizable streets in the Inland Empire - runs north to south through the heart of the city, and the neighborhoods on either side of it contain some of Upland's oldest homes and heaviest tree cover. Those mature trees are beautiful, but their roots are also the reason so many walkways, driveways, and patio slabs in those neighborhoods have lifted and cracked over the decades. Working on older properties near the historic Upland Train Depot and downtown means matching original masonry materials and respecting the character of homes that have been standing since the 1920s and 1930s.
We also serve Pomona to the southeast and Rancho Cucamonga just to the east - both share the same clay soil and Santa Ana wind conditions that Upland homeowners deal with every year.
Reach us by phone or through the contact form and we will respond within one business day to confirm the scope and schedule a time to visit your Upland property. You do not need to have exact measurements or specifications ready.
We visit the property, assess the work, and provide a written estimate covering all costs before anything is approved. If the project requires a permit from the City of Upland, we note that in the estimate and explain the process - there are no surprise fees added later.
We schedule Upland jobs with the local permit timeline in mind when permits are needed, so work starts after approvals are in hand. For most projects you do not need to be home during the work, though we ask that someone is available for the start of day one to walk through the plan.
When the work is complete, we walk the finished project with you before we leave and address any questions on the spot. Final inspection sign-off is coordinated with the City of Upland for permitted work - you are not left managing that step yourself.
We serve all of Upland, CA - from the neighborhoods near Euclid Avenue to the foothills along the San Gabriel Mountains. Free written estimate, no obligation.
(909) 834-5289Upland is a city of roughly 79,000 people in San Bernardino County, sitting at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains with Mount Baldy visible on the northern skyline. The city has carried the nickname "City of Gracious Living" for decades - a reflection of its tree-lined streets, mature landscaping, and a residential character that feels more established than many of its Inland Empire neighbors. The historic downtown area along Second Avenue and Euclid Avenue contains some of the oldest homes in the city, with structures dating back to the early 1900s near the historic 1906 Upland Train Depot.
Most of Upland's housing stock was built in two distinct waves: mid-century ranch homes from the 1950s through the 1970s concentrated in the central and southern parts of the city, and larger two-story homes from the 1980s through the 2000s in the northern neighborhoods closer to the foothills. The older properties tend to have more complex masonry needs - original brick chimneys, aging block wall fences, and concrete flatwork that predates modern compaction standards. Nearby Ontario to the south shares a similar mid-century housing stock, while Rancho Cucamonga to the east developed later and has a higher proportion of 1980s and 1990s tract homes.
Restore structural integrity and stop further damage with expert foundation repair.
Learn MoreFix cracks, spalling, and mortar damage to keep your chimney safe and functional.
Learn MoreBuild strong retaining walls that hold back soil and add usable outdoor space.
Learn MoreBring aged or weathered masonry back to its original appearance and strength.
Learn MoreAdd warmth and character with a custom masonry fireplace built to last.
Learn MoreUpgrade any surface with beautiful, low-maintenance stone veneer cladding.
Learn MoreConstruct solid concrete block walls for property boundaries or privacy.
Learn MoreSet a stable, level foundation block wall as the base for new construction.
Learn MoreDesign and build a durable outdoor kitchen perfect for entertaining.
Learn MoreCreate safe, beautiful walkways using brick, stone, or paver materials.
Learn MoreInstall long-lasting brick walls for fences, garden beds, or facades.
Learn MoreRe-point deteriorating mortar joints to extend the life of brick structures.
Learn MoreCall today or submit a request online and we will have a written estimate to you within one business day - no pressure, no obligation.