One of my neighbors is a busy gardener, and digs up sections of her yard periodically to make room for new plantings. For a few years, she has been piling up the removed sod and dirt against the side of her garage along the alley. This berm has become its own ecosystem, with growth of its own, and is now about 2 feet high against the wall. The question is, will this do long-term damage to the brick wall of her garage? We are just north of Chicago with its temperature extremes, and I suppose the brick is Chicago common brick. Will she eventually erode the mortar, or the brick itself? Thanks.
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Yes, it will eventually cause some damage. But not rapidly, and mostly cosmetic.
A bigger danger is that the bottom plate of the wall will rot out.
Not necessarily
If the wall is CMU/brick, then there may be no bottom plate to rot out.
sod vs. brick
Thanks. I'm 99% sure it's brick on a slab. Will check it out next time she has a garage sale, and update her.
I see 2 issues. You can stain the brick and you can get a build up of moisture on the other side of that brick wall. If it was designed to be above grade, it will not have the same moisture protection as you have below grade.