how much to point a house

[Calla]

Hi folks. I think I need some of the pointing doing on my house. There are little patches here and there that look like they need doing so I ws wondering if it's possible to just get the patches done or will it look funny and am I better off getting the whole house done? If I get it all done, does anyone have any idea how much it might cost to get an average, brick built semi done so i have some general idea of the cost? Thanks in advance for any replies. Andy.

[mark]

The aesthetics of patching is down to you but a lot cheaper. I would be thinking in the order of £50 sq.m for large areas + scaffold.

mark

[Bolted]

I had quotes varying from =A315 to =A325 per m2 plus scaffolding for a rear elevation (4m x c9m) - that was 2007 and London prices.

There isn't any sense in just getting patches done - if some of it is going, the rest will follow in time, and the new stuff won't match the old stuff and it will look like a patchy mess.

[Phil L]

I charge £15 per metre for raking out and re-pointing to a depth of 12.5mm. I don't use scaffolding cos it's too expensive and customers don't want to pay for it, but sometimes I use the 'zip-up' towers if it's easier, but mostly I do it off ladders.

Patch pointing is OK but it has the undesired effect of making the remainder look bad, that is to say, I had a customer ask me to re-point 'where it needs it', so I did and then she pointed out 'this bit needs doing, and that bit needs doing', so I said, 'yes but it didn't need doing until I done the patches near it, and now it looks crap'.

It worked out that I ended up pointing the whole house.

As a rough guide, a hipped semi (gutters on all three sides) is around 75m2 and a semi with a peak (gutters front and back only) is around 88m2, so depending on where you live, round about £1200 and if they won't work off ladders, you'll have to pay about 5-600 for scaffolding

[Tabby]

Modernish house, or old soft bricks? If the latter, patch only, matching the mortar - which isnt hard.

NT

[Calla]

It's a 1930's semi so old soft bricks I reckon. I've never squeezed one so don't really know :) I've been having a bit of a better look today an there's quite a few patches here and there so it would probably be worth just getting the whole lot done. Some bits are quite bad and the mortar has come right out of the gap, leaving nothing between the bricks but space, so it needs sorting sharpish. Had it been just a few bits I'd have had a go myself but this is too much for me. I'd make it look a mess so sometimes I have to admit I'm out of my depth. Thanks for your replies - it's helped a lot.