Pointing

Mortar pointing is the interface between roofing elements and the masonry or tiling they bed into — and it is a quiet, slow failure mode that is easy to ignore until it has caused considerable secondary damage. Failed pointing on a chimney stack allows water into the brick core. Crumbled verge mortar lets the wind get under the edge tiles of a gable end. Deteriorated ridge pointing allows ridge tiles to rock and shift.

Legacy Roofing carries out pointing across Berkshire and London — ridge re-pointing, chimney stack repointing, verge mortar, and parapet coping pointing. We work in appropriate mixes: modern OPC cement mortars on contemporary properties where movement is limited; softer lime-compatible mixes on older brick chimneys and masonry that need a degree of flexibility to avoid future cracking.

Getting the mix wrong is a common issue on older properties. A hard OPC mortar on a Victorian chimney stack will eventually force the movement stress into the bricks rather than the joints — and brick failure is far more costly to address than mortar failure. We take the building age and substrate into account before mixing.

All pointing is raked out to a proper depth — a minimum of 15mm — before new mortar is applied. Skim-over pointing does not bond correctly and will delaminate.

Contact us for a free quote on pointing work.