If Your House Needs Some Plastic Surgery Done Then Give Tuckpointing A Try

By Author: vikram Kuamr
Total Articles: 2912
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As years go by, buildings, like humans, will start to show their age. This is especially true when talking about brick and mortar buildings, making tuckpointing and lintel replacement a necessity.

Brick walls can serve as a partition between 2 spaces or as a load bearing support wall. If it is a load bearing wall then as time goes by it will under go change. This is especially true of outside walls that are exposed to the climate. The reason for this is because the walls will start to buckle under the weight of the building and it will ultimately manifest itself as cracks in the mortar. It goes without saying that this is not a good thing, from both a structural as well as an aesthetic point of view.

It is in these situations that Tuckpointing is done to the wall. Tuckpointing is done to give the building a stronger structure as well as to give it a facelift. Cracks appear because of several different reasons. As mentioned before, it can be weather related or load related. The other reasons can be from the building shifting or settling on its foundation. If masonry ties are not properly installed it can also ...
... cause cracks on the bricks and mortar. Cracking of the mortar can also be caused by contraction and expansion, as a result of hot and cold weather.

Cracks on the mortar can either be deep single cracks or small cracks, which resemble small veins. These types of small cracks are known as crazing in construction parlance. Crazing is what happens when the mortar cracks due to heat and cold. Whichever type it is, it can be dealt with Tuckpointing. The technical procedure involved for this is actually quite simple but somewhat time consuming. It is time consuming because you need to do a good finish and there are no short cuts for this procedure. The mortar will be cut around ¾ inches deep and then removed. New mortar will be applied to give it a like new finished look.

Next we come to the subject of lintel replacement. If you were to look in between the bricks and the top part of the window or door frame, you would see a flat piece of metal. This is the metal the bricks rest on. Not on the door or window frame itself as most people believe. As the years go by, this metal will start going through the inevitable process of corrosion. This will compromise the safety of the windows and doors, as well as the walls around it. Needles to say at some point you will need a lintel replacement. A sure sign of this problem is when water leaks through this area and the bricks begin to crack around it. The earlier it is replaced the better.

Author Bio.

Bruno next generation construction have experienced personnel, who will be able to asses the damage of your house and give you advice on tuckpointing and lintel replacement. They will give you the peace of mind you need.