![]() When bricks have separated from the mortar.When past repairs were done improperly and without removing damaged mortar.When mortar joints have fallen out and the chimney has been weakened as a result.As with old masonry, flawed new masonry can be replaced through the process of tuck pointing. Sometimes newly constructed masonry can have sloppy mortar, improper coloring, bee holes, or other damage. Once brick is damaged, there’s not much you can do but rebuild.īut, it’s not just old masonry that requires tuck pointing. Ignoring this problem can lead to damage within the brick. If you are noticing cracking and crumbling in the mortar of your chimney or fireplace, it is imperative that you have it replaced immediately. It also helps to protect the brick surrounding the failing mortar, so that water can no longer penetrate it and cause internal brick damage.Īlthough the masonry of old is incredibly durable, it still suffers deterioration caused by time and weather. This is typically done to restore the strength and stability of masonry where mortar joints are failing. Our licensed estimators can recognize and explain the appropriate repair methods needed for your building.Tuck pointing or pointing refers to the process of removing old, substandard or deteriorating mortar and replacing it with new, high-quality mortar. (This may be the case, for example, if cracks in the mortar joints run the full depth of the wall or the masonry is loose to the touch.) If your masonry walls are too deteriorated for grinding and tuckpointing, then they may need to be dismantled and rebuilt altogether. Sometimes the integrity of a masonry structure is so compromised that grinding and tuckpointing won't do the trick. Not a nice look and definitely not the way to preserve the integrity of the brick structure. As you can see, previous owners repeatedly applied new mortar right over defective old mortar to the point that the mortar overflows the space between the bricks. In the photo, Andrew is grinding out multiple layers of defective mortar on a 100-year-old garage. Typically grinding work is performed using hand-held machine grinders and vacuum attachments (used to mitigate the release of dust). (This is also the minimum standard required by well established architecture/engineering firms like WJE, Klein & Hoffman, Waldman Engineering, Perry & Associates, KGH, etc.) All grinding work at AAA-1 Masonry & Tuckpointing calls for mortar joints to be ground out to a minimum depth of 3/4 inch. But this is not deep enough to ensure a long-lived project. (Generally, the more mortar applied, the longer the repair will last.) Many masonry companies grind out defective mortar joints to a depth of only 1/4 inch or 1/2 inch. By deeply grinding out defective mortar first, we create the space needed to pack in a lot of new mortar and tool a nice joint profile. So grinding and tuckpointing is the process we recommend to correct defective mortar joints. In our experience, tuckpointing alone rarely ensures an effective long-term fix very often a long-term fix requires defective mortar joints be ground out first before applying any new mortar. (Dry weather and an absence of repeated hard freezes help to explain why so many 1000 year-old structures remain intact in places like India, Egypt and Greece.) Chicago's wet weather and freeze/thaw cycles take a real toll on your mortar. Over time, your building's mortar joints will erode and crack apart. ![]() Tuckpointing aids in keeping your masonry building in good shape because new mortar, if applied correctly, works like glue to keep your building materials bonded together and prevents wet weather events like rain and snow from infiltrating the masonry walls and damaging the integrity of your building.
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