Masonry is the process of building structures, often with bricks, rock or stones bound together with cement. Masonry repair is a specialist job and includes brick repair, brick wall repair and brick tuckpointing services. Brick tuckpointing doesn’t just involve repairing brick structures, it is used to improve the appearance of brick walls. Old damaged walls look like new when a specialist tuckpointer has finished. Tuckpointing can be performed on any type of brick structure, it is often carried out on the walls of buildings, chimneys, fireplaces, and other brick walls.
There are many splendid buildings in Chicago with amazing masonry workmanship. However, due to the harsh winters, the masonry needs maintenance more often than if the building was located somewhere else, around every 10 to 15 years. The harsh weather damages the bricks and mortar, which then need repairing. The average time frame in between tuckpointing jobs is normally 2 or 3 decades before the brickwork will require tuckpointing. At Peters Masonry Restoration & Tuckpointing their specialist tuckpointing contractors recommend that tuckpointing should be carried out during the spring as this is the quietest season for tuckpointing services compared to the summer months and as dry weather conditions are needed, during the winter season is not recommended.
Why Tuckpoint?
Tuckpointing is the process of removing old mortar from joints between bricks, replacing it with mortar that closely matches the color of the bricks, and then placing narrow lines of putty in a contrasting color down the centers of the new mortar joints. Professional tuckpointing is needed because over time the mortar between the bricks begins to deteriorate and so needs replacing with new mortar. Weakened mortar joints can result in water getting into the masonry and damaging the bricks, which is an extremely destructive problem. Tuckpointing will prevent moisture from getting inside the masonry and causing damage, otherwise, this could lead to the structural integrity of the whole building being affected and collapsing.
When Should I Tuckpoint?
If there are any signs of holes, gaps, or cracks in the mortar, or any deteriorating bricks or bricks with white discoloration, these are all signs of damage and tuckpointing needs to be performed. You need to call a tuckpointing specialist as soon as possible to carry out repairs. (ambient pharmacy) Leaving the problem will only allow it to progress into a more serious and expensive problem. The optimum conditions for this work are temperatures between 40-90 ° F in the 24 hours before and 72 hours after, and no snow or rain from the day before until a few hours after the job has been finished.
