Latest Articles
Choosing a Mortar Gun and Jointing Tools for Repointing: Guide
The right mortar gun depends on your joint depth and mortar type—not the marketing on the box. Learn which tools actually earn their place before you spend a weekend fighting a blocked nozzle.
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Restoring a Victorian Stone Church: Lessons from a Full Project
A Victorian church's slow leak hides industrial-era flaws that medieval repairs can't fix. This insider's guide reveals the real sequence, costs, and consent traps of a full restoration—saving you a year of your life.
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Recognising Salt Damage and Efflorescence on Stone Surfaces: A Guide
That white bloom on your stone isn't just cosmetic—it's a moisture warning. Learn to tell efflorescence from structural salt damage before you waste weeks scrubbing a symptom while the real problem eats your masonry.
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Why Cement Mortar Damages Historic Brick and Stone
Hard cement mortar used to repoint historic walls is quietly destroying the brick and stone it was meant to protect. Learn why old masonry needs to breathe—and how to spot the damage before it spreads.
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Aggregates and Sands for Compatible Historic Mortar Mixes
Most guides obsess over lime ratios, but the real reason historic mortar fails is the aggregate. Getting the sand's grading, colour and angularity right is 80% of the job — here's how to match it.
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Stone Replacement: Matching Colour, Texture and Bedding Plane
Matching stone isn't just about colour—lay it on the wrong bedding plane and even a perfect match will delaminate within a few winters. Here's how to get hue, texture and orientation right so nobody ever sees the joint.
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Conserving Historic Church Stonework: A Practical Overview
Most damage to historic church stonework comes from well-meaning intervention, not neglect. This practical guide explains how to diagnose problems first, why doing nothing is often the right call, and why lime—never cement—is your friend.
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Choosing the Right Lime Mortar Mix for Historic Stone
Choosing lime mortar for historic stone isn't about the recipe—it's about deciding which element fails first, and ensuring it's never the stone. Learn the sacrificial principle, from lime putty to NHL, before you point a single joint.
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