Recessed pointing
Set back from the face for strong shadow lines. Modern look.
Cross-section: brick above and below, mortar in the middle, face of the wall on the right.
Pointing styles
Recessed
A recessed joint is raked back a few millimetres from the face of the brick and left square or slightly rounded. The shadow it casts makes each brick stand out and gives the wall a sharp, modern look.
The trade-off is weather resistance. The top edge of each brick is left exposed and the ledge holds water, so on soft brick or exposed walls a recessed joint speeds up frost damage. Developers use it on new build because modern engineering brick can take it.
We'll match a recessed profile on newer houses — snagging repoints on developer homes in Milnrow and Heywood, for instance — and we'll advise against it on anything older.
- Suits
- Modern brick with crisp, hard arrises; new build; feature walls.
- Avoid on
- Soft or old brick, exposed elevations, anything already suffering frost damage.
The others
More pointing styles
Flush
Filled level with the face of the brick or stone. Plain and clean.
Weather struck
Angled back at the top so rain runs off the face. The hardest-wearing profile.
Bucket handle
Concave, tooled with a round bar. Compacts well and hides irregular brick.
Tuck pointing
A brick-coloured joint with a fine white line tucked in. A period feature.
Not sure which finish your house has?
Send Scott a photo of a joint up close. He'll tell you what it is and what it should be repointed in.