Brick_Wall_Damage098-DJFs.jpg' alt='Brick Cracking On My House' title='Brick Cracking On My House' />How to Make Brick Mortar Repairs. Avira Premium Security Suite En Espanol. When the mortar in your brick siding starts to crumble, like you see here, its not something you should put off fixing. Gaps between the bricks can allow moisture to penetrate behind the wall, which can lead to all sorts of problems, like excessive moisture in your wall cavities and eventually, mold. While you could call a mason to fix the problem, its a relatively easy project to tackle yourself and inexpensive too if you have the right tools and materials. And everything you need, including the advice, is just a short trip away to you guessed it your local independent home improvement retailer. Today were going to fix the crumbling mortar in this brick siding using a process called repointing. First were going to remove the old cracked mortar by chiseling it out. Brick Cracking On My House' title='Brick Cracking On My House' />Then were going to mix up a batch of new mortar and place it between the joints in a way even the ancient Romans, who invented the technique, would be proud of. Finally, well smooth it out so you cant tell that it was ever repaired in the first place. So lets get started. This cold chisel is the prefect tool to dig out the old mortar. Cracks that occur in the surface of brick wall facings are usually repairable. These usually occur when there is external or internal stress on the wall. Once the. Get your weekly DIY fix with our customized newsletter. Thanks Youve been added to our list. Good stuff is on its way LastiSeal Penetrating Brick Concrete Sealer LongLasting Protection for Porous Brick, Concrete, and Masonry. LastiSeal Brick Concrete Sealer is a unique, state. To start chipping out the mortar, start in the middle of the joint and angle the chisel at about 3. Then slowly chip away. Also be sure youre wearing thick leather gloves and safety glasses for this step. As you continue chipping away at the mortar, increase your angle to dig deeper. Remember, we need to make sure the mortar is chiseled out to a depth of 1. This is probably the most important step in the process and is the difference between a repointing job that will last for years, and a tuck pointing patch job, where new mortar is added over the old cracked mortar without removing it first. No doubt, chiseling is hard work, and takes a lot of time. Lucky for us we caught the problem early, and only have a small section to do. Pointing or tuckpointing trowels, as they are often called, come in different widths to match the width of the mortar joints between the brick. Be sure to pick up a couple different sizes close the width of your mortar joints. Once weve chiseled to a depth of one inch, well check it with this metal ruler. That should do the trick. The next critical step is to make sure the mortar channel is as clean as possible and that all dust and loose debris is swept out of the joint. Well use this stiff bristled brush to start cleaning out the joint. Then, a shot of air with a compressor will remove any remaining dust. Now the mortar will have a surface free of debris to which it can form a secure bond. As you can see, chiseling and cleaning out mortar joints is hard work. If we had a house full of cracked mortar joints, we would consider renting a pneumatic chisel from our local independent home improvement retailer to speed the process along. Now its time to mix up a batch of our repair mortar, carefully following the manufacturers instructions. Well mix it up with our margin trowel in this bucket, adding water sparingly until we reach the desired consistency. Thats just about right. Once the mortar mix can stick to the bottom of our trowel without falling off, we know it will stick to our joint. Before we start filling the joints with our mortar mix, well mist the brick and the joints down to wet them slightly. This will help the mortar cure without drying out too fast. To get the mortar into the joints takes a little practice. First, put some mortar along the length of the drywall taping knife, close to the side. You can also use a drywall hawk. Then, holding it up just beneath the joint, well use our tuck pointing trowel to push the mortar into the joint. This is where you dont want to get into a big hurry. Several thin layers of mortar spread out over several hours is better than pushing a big glob into the joint all at once. It only takes a few tries to get the technique down, and once you get the hang of it, it will seem easy for the rest of the project. When we reach the desired thickness, well use this brick jointer to smooth and shape the joint, trying to mimic the look of the existing joints as best we can. Like pointing trowels, brick jointers come in different sizes to match the thickness of your mortar joints. The concave shape it leaves behind helps shed water away from both the brick and the mortar joint itself, which will prolong the life of your brick siding. While this is a tried and true method that has been used for centuries, there are some products available that come in both caulk tubes and squeeze tubes ready to apply to the joint. Just be sure to prep the joint the same way and read and follow the manufacturers instructions carefully. The last thing we need to do is re mist the area and cover our work for a couple days to keep the joints moist, so they will cure properly. After re misting the area with a spray bottle of water, this plastic trash bag taped over the area will do the trick. While the repair mortar mix were using may feel dry to the touch in a few hours, after repointing, it will take a good month for it to reach full strength. There you have it. Now admit it that was easier than you thought it would be, and it was kind of fun, too. The best part is now that we know the basics of repointing, well be able to fix problems as they arise in the future and keep our brick siding looking great for years to come. Close Transcript. Brick Pavers 1. 01 How To Keep Them Clean, Seal Them Properly And More. Especially after a thorough cleaning, applying a layer of sealant to brick paving is vital for maintaining a clean surface and preventing weed growth. Landscaping contractors should be able to provide comprehensive sealing services shortly after cleaning the brick paving. Sealed bricks will also repel stains so the next time they need to be cleaned the brick pavers will not be nearly as dirty. In the end, sealing brick pavers will protect your investment for years to come. Sealing brick pavers is an art unto itself rely on landscaping contractors to do the job to maximize the effectiveness of the protective seal. 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