Benefits of Tuckpointing
The Benefits of Tuckpointing a Chimney The mortar in your chimney needs to be replaced periodically. While the lifespan of a chimney’s mortar is about 25 years, it can fall apart sooner without proper care. If a chimney isn’t repaired, it can start to lean and ultimately collapse. In addition, moisture can cause other costly problems when it enters the structure. Tuckpointing is a procedure that repairs and restores masonry; it prevents further deterioration.
What is Tuckpointing?
Tuckpointing is the process of replacing old mortar in your brick walls with new mortar. The tuckpointing professional ground out the crumbling mortar to a certain depth and replaces it with new. These professionals have the skills and experience to identify the scope of the job that needs to be done and produce top results.
When is Tuckpointing Needed?
Some signs of deteriorating mortar are easy to spot. Moisture getting into the brick or stone masonry and flaking or popping off can be one indication that it’s time to repair your masonry. You can test your mortar by rubbing a key across it; if a powdered material is scratched up, you may need to repair your masonry.
Step-by-Step Tuckpointing
Tuckpointing involves replacing damaged mortar on bricks and stone with fresh mortar. Tuckpointing is labor-intensive, but when done correctly, the original shape of the bricks and mortar can be recreated. The following steps are needed to complete a tuckpointing job on a red brick chimney:
– Ground out the old mortar
– Slide in mortar in the newly routed grooves
– In the red mortar, cut thin strips down the middle to form grooves.
– Use paint tint to match the mortar color on the outside of the chimney and fill in the grooves with it.
Tuckpointing Benefits
There are many good reasons to have your chimney tuckpointed when the mortar is weak, including the following:
– Tuckpointing prevents the corrosion process.
– When mortar deteriorates, moisture can get into the chimney and cause stone or brick masonry to break apart. Regular tuckpointing extends the life of the chimney by providing a waterproof joint between new and old mortar.
– Tuckpointing is a maintenance procedure that restores the structural integrity of chimney mortar joints. If joints are not repaired when they are weakened, a complete rebuild will eventually be needed.
– It saves you money to repair your chimney as opposed to rebuilding.
