Brickwork problems are notoriously difficult to spot with the layman’s eye alone. Here we provide our professional input as to how you can spot any brickwork issues, and understand what may be needed in order to address them.

The importance of maintaining your brickwork

Let us first begin with why brickwork problems are so important to spot quickly. When bricks aren’t well maintained, serious problems can rapidly progress, as the bricks allow for moisture and air to access the interior walls of your property. This can lead to a wide variety of issues, from structural instability to costly damage, both of which can compromise the safety of the building. To this end you should look out for: missing mortar; old mortar; mortar joints that protrude outwards and brickwork that sags, bulges or bows.

Mortar condition

Old mortar

Mortar is likely one of the easiest elements of brickwork to inspect; simply run your finger across the mortar surface – where there is a sand like substance that comes off, or where the mortar falls away, the mortar will need to be replaced.

Missing mortar

Where you spot mortar that has fallen away from the brickwork you should call a professional company such as ourselves immediately. Once on-site, a qualified expert will thoroughly inspect the brickwork, documenting the issues in images and later inspecting them closer up on a computer.

Mortar joints that protrude

Protruding mortar joints can be identified by a quick visual inspection – look out for joints that don’t align with one another or any areas where there is protrusion, both of which could soon lead to joints that fall out.

Walls that are bowing or sagging

To identify a wall that sags or bows, you should look vertically up the wall. A further symptom are tiny cracks that can begin to form around doors and windows, which may run for several bricks. It’s worth noting that these may be different to stress cracks, which are caused when windows are installed. These happen due to the lintel that supports the brickwork above it bearing down on the bricks below. Such bricks could deteriorate to such a point that the entire structure is no longer able to provide enough support. You could also experience stress cracks where there has been settling in the foundation walls – this is typically due to water runoff being incorrectly managed.

When a wall bows, the root cause is typically one of three things:

– Substandard brickwork, involving the improper arrangement of bricks

– Inadequate tuckpointing, which goes on to cause the brickwork to weaken

– Broken or missing wall ties (these can also be identified where there are horizontal cracks or bulges in the brickwork)

Suspect that your property is suffering from brickwork issues? Call the team at London Repointing and Restoration. We can provide impartial advice, free from obligation. Call us on 0208 306 8233 or email us via info@londonrepointingandrestorationltd.co.uk and we’ll be right back in touch.