Scottish Borders · Scotland
Galashiels External Mastic
Sealing brickwork movement joints, render, cladding and façade joints for householders, landlords and businesses in Galashiels. Fully insured, ARBOMaster approved and guaranteed for a year.
- Joints pointed up with cement by mistake
- Water getting into walls through failed joints
- Hard, crazed mastic that has stopped moving
Signs you need external mastic in Galashiels
Sunlight, wet weather and frost wear exterior sealant down. In time it goes hard, crazes on the surface and stops stretching, so the joint eventually tears or comes away from one side.
Look out for any of the following:
- Joints pointed up with cement by mistake
- Failed sealant between panels on a façade
- Plants rooting in failed movement joints
- Sealant that has lost its bond to the brick or render
For site and facilities teams at buildings such as Galashiels Academy, its movement joints, gutters and trims need looking after like any other building’s.
Questions to ask before booking
- Who does the work, and how experienced they are
- Whether you can choose the colour
- How long the guarantee is
- Whether VAT is included
External mastic in Galashiels, done properly
Movement joints let brickwork, render and cladding expand and shrink without cracking. The sealant in it has to stretch and squeeze for years, and when it fails, the wall takes the strain and water finds a way in. If you’re dealing with rigid filler in a joint that should flex and brick movement joints where the sealant has split, we can help, whatever the surface.
In a town like Galashiels, older stone-built streets sit alongside newer estates with brick, render and uPVC rooflines. Each has its own weak points: worn joints in old gutters, and dried-out movement joints in newer walls.
A 12-month guarantee comes as standard, so you are covered after we have gone.
- Location
- Galashiels (TD1)
- Region
- Scottish Borders
- Guarantee
- A year, on every job
- Quotes
- A clear price before work begins
- info@mrmastic.co.uk
- Last updated
- 26 October 2026
Galashiels questions
Do you work for landlords with property near Galashiels station?
Yes, landlords and agents are among the people we work for, and several properties can go on one quote. You can drop us a line at info@mrmastic.co.uk with the details for a clear quote.
Can you do external mastic in Galashiels?
Yes. We work across all of Scotland, and Galashiels is part of that. You can drop us a line at info@mrmastic.co.uk and tell us what needs doing, and we will give you a clear quote.
Is it messy?
Very little: the area around the joints is protected first, and we clear up the old sealant and our materials before we leave.
Is it OK to fill a movement joint with cement?
No. Cement or mortar cannot stretch, so the joint stops doing its job. Where a joint has been mortared, it can often be raked out and sealed properly.
Which products do you use?
It depends on the joint: anti-fungal sanitary silicone in wet areas, and other sealants where joints move or face the weather. Brands we use include Arbo and Everbuild.
How do I get a quote for external mastic in Galashiels?
It depends on the job, so we quote each one individually. For a quick quote, drop us a line at info@mrmastic.co.uk with a short description of the job.
Can you do several jobs on one visit?
Yes, we can. More than one area can go on one quote.
What information do you need?
Only a few details: the address or postcode, what’s wrong and any access issues. After that, simply send an email to info@mrmastic.co.uk.
Galashiels buildings and the weather
Plenty of Scottish homes have harled walls, and where harling meets frames, pipes and other materials, the joint needs a flexible sealant that grips a rough surface. Under the Repairing Standard, private landlords in Scotland have to keep homes wind and watertight, and failed outside joints work against that.
Historic houses such as Peel House, about 3.8 miles west, show how far back building around Galashiels goes, and older homes nearby need a sealant that suits their walls. If you let a flat or house near Galashiels station, failed wall and movement joints let damp in, so they’re worth checking between tenancies.
Galashiels is about 28 miles south-east of Edinburgh, in the Scottish Borders. Across the TD1 area, we can carry out external mastic at your property. Galashiels is one of 89 places in the Scottish Borders where we work. Edinburgh is on our list too, about 28 miles from Galashiels.
Our applicators cover all of the TD1 postcode area for external mastic. That includes homes and businesses on Market Street, High Street and Paton Street and the roads around them. With the A7 and A72 close by, Galashiels is easy for our applicators to reach. We also cover Langlee (1 mile east), Boleside (2 miles south), Tweedbank (2 miles south-east), Darnick (3 miles east) and Clovenfords (3 miles west). Further out, we also cover Hawick (13 miles south), Peebles (15 miles west), Kelso (15 miles east), Selkirk (5 miles south), Jedburgh (14 miles south-east) and Wilton (13 miles south). As one of the bigger places in the Scottish Borders, Galashiels has homes, rented property and businesses of every kind.
Near you in Galashiels
In Galashiels, that means homes and buildings near Public House and the streets around them. There’s a railway station in Galashiels itself: Galashiels station. Nearby you will also find Borders General Hospital (2.7 miles south-east) and Castle Holydean (4.4 miles south-east). The countryside around Galashiels includes Eildon Mid Hill.
Places near Galashiels
What else we do in Galashiels
What happens on the day
Most of a good job is in the preparation, so that is where we spend the time. Joints are cleaned back and dried before anything new goes in. In total, it generally takes anything from a few hours to several days, depending on the building. Parking around Galashiels is rarely difficult, though older streets in the centre can be tight. If you’re in a flat with a shared stair or a door entry system, let us know when you book.
- We look at every joint and agree a colour to suit the wall.
- We take out the old sealant until the faces are sound.
- Backing rod goes in so the sealant can stretch between the two faces.
- We prime the faces where required.
- We gun in low-modulus sealant and tool it neatly.
Preparing for the visit
- Where the joints are inside, avoid wetting them before we arrive
- Mention any tricky access
- Tell us about any water getting in
Getting a quote
A good description makes for an accurate quote. Let us know the location, the problem and roughly how many joints.
Advice
Different surfaces, different methods
Concrete and blockwork
Wide joints in concrete need the depth controlling carefully. Backing rod sized to the joint sets it and keep the sealant to the right depth.
Copings and trims
Coping joints that leak let water straight down into the wall. Sealing them early saves the wall below.
Aftercare tips
Simple care keeps the joints in good condition. Our advice:
- Leave the joints unpainted unless we’ve said otherwise
- Look over the joints every year, ideally after winter
- Tell anyone working on the walls about the movement joints
- Make sure movement joints are not pointed over
Look over the joints once a year, ideally after winter. Watch for splits, edges coming away or growth in the joint.
Small splits are the time to act. Then it’s a straightforward cut-out and reseal.
DIY versus a professional finish
Not every job suits DIY: high-level joints, fire-rated gaps, external movement joints and big jobs call for the right materials, safe access and experience.
If you’re set on DIY, put the effort into preparation: remove every trace of old sealant, clean and dry the joint, and follow the product’s cure time. If it fails, we can still redo it.
Why it’s worth doing now in Galashiels
It often makes sense to reseal all the failing joints on an elevation together. Joints of the same age tend to fail together, and access only has to be arranged once. Scottish weather finds any gap, and in a town like Galashiels, failed outside joints soon let damp into walls. Indoors, failed sealant lets water into floors and ceilings.
Instead of a standard rate, we look at what your job involves: the amount of work, the old material and the access. You’ll know the price before we begin.
What you get with us
- Experience in homes, commercial sites and hotels
- Tidy, careful work
- 20+ years of sealant experience
- A choice of colours where the product allows
Honest limits
We’d rather tell you now than do work that will not last, so these are the limits:
- Cracked brickwork or render that needs a builder or plasterer
- Render that is blown, hollow or coming away
- Subsidence or other structural problems
If you’re not sure, just send an email to info@mrmastic.co.uk and we will give you a straight answer before you book.
Joints and surfaces we work on
- Façade panels
- Copings & trims
- Concrete & block
- Brickwork movement joints
- Render & cladding joints
- Joints between brick and frames