Tuckpointing Stone Wall Repair

Demonstrates how to do some brick and mortar repairs aka tuck pointing on your home.

Tuckpointing stone wall repair.

There are many practitioners of this craft but probably few as affable and knowledgeable as ian cramb a scotsman now living in eastern pennsylvania. Repointing an old brick wall with soft lime mortar. Tuckpointing is the process of repairing or refilling mortar joints in brick. The process of fixing crumbling mortar in a stone wall is quite tedious but it s also pretty simple.

We take out the crumbling rotting mortar and put new in. Older mortar made with lime and sand gives way rather nicely with a hammer and chisel. Newer mortar made of portland cement often has to be ground out with power tools. Professional tuckpointing usually runs around 9 to 15 per square foot depending on the height of the wall and the standard rate for mason services in your area.

Courtesy of the national park service. The type of mortar used to repair the crumbling joints is the most important factor. Tuck pointing a stone foundation wall is a job that requires time patience and a few specialty tools. Https amzn to 39ewasp 3 8 x.

Pack more mortar around the stone. To replace large stones that have fallen from the wall lay down a thick bed of mortar and set the stone in place. We determine this by what type of stone the wall is made of and the condition the stone is in. The name comes from the action of tucking or packing mortar into the damaged joint with a tool called a tuck pointer mortar joints play a critical role in the structural integrity of a brick wall.

Tuckpointing won t fix cracking or crumbling bricks or cracks in walls caused by a shifting foundation. Tuckpointing isn t difficult or expensive the only real investment is your time. Learn how to repoint stone masonry like a pro. This of course costs more money to repair than it does to tuckpoint the mortar joints in the first place as mentioned earlier in point number 4 above.

Well that s it tuckpointing in a nutshell. But you can pick away at it in your free time area by area. Then lightly mist the mortar with water and use a soft bristle brush to smooth the mortar flush against each stone. After filling all the joints let the mortar set up for about an hour.

Eddie greer of better home inspection and improvements llc.