Brick Cleaning & Lime Pointing | Disley, Stockport

Job Info

Raked out using 8mm wide-bore diamond raking blades to a healthy depth of around 14mm+ (as common brick require). Going beyond the specification of the quote, on rake out we discovered there was some slight movement in the rear gable, with signs of slipage in some of the header bricks above the window openings etc which we slate packed. Slate packing is the process of 'hammering' in pieces of slate to ensure compression between the masonry units (brickwork in this case). This stiffens up the masonry and prevents any further slippage in affected areas.

Prepwork & Brick Cleaning Phase

As part of the prep, we first remove all mortar from the brick joints before applying any masonry cleaning solutions. In this case we used a calibrated HFL acid specific to the type of brick the building was constructed from. Removing the mortar before applying the acid is important as it ensures the edges of the bricks are cleaned, where some contractors may clean the brick first, then rake the mortar out as it used much less cleaning solution (acid), however we're fussy about this sort of thing so we rake out first then clean. This also creates a suitable 'key' within within the brick joint i.e it attacks the mortar inside the joid after rake out, creating a rough surface and improved adhesion with the new ponting mortar.

Repointing

Once prepped, we began pointing with our inhouse hybrid lime mortar. In this case we made a slight adjustment to the mix by addng sharp sand to the agregate base at a ration of 1 part sharp sand to 2 parts building sand. We also slightly increased the cement binder ratio to take into consideration the slipping brickwork and the identification of a historic issue that had affected the building, we could see the previous owners had brought in a pointing expert who had also identified this issue and used a similar mixture previously, and where the previous mixture was mixed with cement at particularly a strong ratio though someewhat overzealous in their choice of ratio/cement content, as was evident when we came to raking the old mortar out which was extremely tough in some areas.

Notes

During the course of the works we discovered there were birds nesting in the brickwork. The customer had a good heart and we worked out how to go about the job and avoid disturbing the broody den as best we could.

The parents were understandably stressed but didnt abandon the nest. At the end of the job, we witnessed some of the chicks making their first flight <$