Above all of the first floor windows of this 1880’s brick farm house there were substantial settlement cracks.  These cracks can occur when window lintels are damaged by water.  In this instance, I am attributing the damage to the aluminum flashing on the windows sills and lintels.  Flashing can be set against the brick or it can be put through the wall by cutting a channel in the mortar.  If the flashing is installed as “through-the-wall” flashing it will do a much better job of keeping water away from the wood.  If not, it tends to trap water in the wood... causing rot. 

But, such analysis is Monday quarterbacking.  We repaired the cracks without replacing or even touching the lintels. Using a stainless steel tie repair method we removed the load from the lintels and placed it to the side of the window by installing the steel deep within the mortar and extending it beyond the width of the window.  These repairs are quick and vastly less expensive than replacing lintels and most importantly they stabilize the crack permanently.