Repointing & Brick Repair
Raking out and repointing in the right mortar – plus spalled brick replacement and structural crack repair.
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Service
Bricklayers in Poole & Dorset
The trade this business was built on – cavity walls, feature bonds, arches, piers and proper blockwork.
Bricklaying is the trade this business started with and it is still what we are best at. Cavity walls, solid walls, feature bonds, gauged arches, corbelled detailing, piers and plinths – laid plumb, gauged to the course, and pointed to a consistent joint.
A lot of firms that call themselves builders subcontract the brickwork out and hope. We do not. If the brickwork on your job is the thing you will be looking at for the next thirty years, it should be laid by somebody who has been doing it for the last thirty.
What's included
- Cavity wall construction with insulation, ties and cavity trays
- Facing brickwork in Flemish, English, stretcher and stack bonds
- Feature work – soldier courses, dentil, corbelling, plinths and bullnose
- Brick and gauged arches, including cut and rubbed work
- Piers, pillars, gate posts and capping
- Blockwork – dense, aerated, and fair-faced internal skins
- Beam and lintel installation with correct bearing
- Reclaimed brick matching for extensions and repairs
Matching an existing wall
Matching brickwork means matching four things, and most people only think of one. The brick itself is the obvious part. The bond has to continue. The joint profile – struck, bucket handle, recessed, flush – has to be the same. And the mortar colour and sand have to match, which on an older property usually means a lime mix, not cement.
We build a sample panel where a match matters, and we would rather spend a morning getting the mortar right than hand over a wall that reads as new from across the road.
Brickwork as a subcontract package
We take on brickwork and blockwork packages for other main contractors, developers and self-builders across the Poole, Wimborne, Wareham and Bournemouth area – supply and fix, or labour only against your materials.
Straight answers
Bricklaying & Blockwork: your questions
How much do bricklayers charge in Dorset?
Bricklaying in this area is most often priced per thousand bricks laid, or as a day rate for smaller and more intricate work. As a guide, expect roughly £600 to £900 per thousand for straightforward facing work, more for feature bonds, arches or reclaimed brick where cutting and matching slow the work down. For anything domestic we normally quote the job as a fixed price rather than by rate.
Can you match the bricks on my Victorian house?
In most cases yes. We source reclaimed bricks and specials from local yards and build a sample panel so you can see the match before we commit to the wall. Where an exact match genuinely is not available, it is usually better to make a deliberate honest change of material than a near-miss that draws the eye.
What is the difference between lime mortar and cement mortar?
Lime mortar is softer and breathable. It lets moisture move out through the joints and it flexes with seasonal movement, which is why it was used on every building in this country before about 1920. Cement mortar is harder than many old bricks, so it traps moisture and forces it to escape through the brick face instead, which spalls the brick over time. On a period property, using the wrong one causes real damage.
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Free, no-obligation quote
Thinking about a project?
Tell us what you have in mind. We will come out, take a proper look, and send you a written quote with no obligation and no sales call afterwards.