Repointing is one of the most common pieces of chimney maintenance we carry out on properties in Kingsweston, and it's also one of the most misunderstood. At its simplest, it means removing degraded mortar from between the bricks of the stack and replacing it with fresh mortar, but doing it properly involves rather more judgement than that description suggests, from matching the mortar mix to the age of the property to getting the finish right so it doesn't stand out.
The first step is raking out the old mortar to a sufficient depth, usually two to three times the joint width, so the new mortar has something solid to key into rather than sitting as a thin skin over failing material underneath. Rushing or skipping this step is the most common cause of repointing that fails again within a few years, which ends up costing more overall than doing it properly the first time. It's a step that's easy to underestimate the importance of when comparing quotes, since a rushed repoint and a proper one can look identical on the day the scaffold comes down.
Mortar mix matters as much as the raking. Older properties around Kingsweston, particularly those with softer, more porous brick, generally need a lime-based mortar that allows the wall to breathe and flex slightly with temperature changes. A hard cement mortar on this kind of brick can trap moisture and, over time, cause the brick face itself to spall as trapped water freezes and expands, which turns a mortar job into a brickwork repair. This is one of the more common mistakes we see corrected on chimneys that have had previous work done by someone unfamiliar with older brick.
Colour and profile matching are also worth getting right, particularly on a stack that's visible from the street or neighbouring properties. New pointing that's the wrong shade or finished with the wrong joint profile can stand out sharply against surrounding brickwork, even when the repair itself is structurally sound, which matters on a terrace where chimneys tend to be seen collectively rather than in isolation.
Repointing is usually done from scaffolding rather than a ladder, both for safety and to allow a proper, even finish across the whole stack rather than just the sections that are easiest to reach. Where scaffold is already up for repointing, it's sensible to have the flashing, flaunching and pots checked at the same time, since any issues there are far cheaper to fix while access is already in place, rather than being left for a separate call-out down the line.
If the mortar on your chimney is looking eroded, patchy, or noticeably lighter and crumblier than it once was, it's worth getting a repointing quote before it progresses to loose brickwork and a bigger job. Brunel Roofing Bristol repoints chimneys across Kingsweston using mortar mixes matched to the property, with a free, no-obligation inspection to start.
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