Orkney Islands · Scotland
Kirkwall External Mastic
Professional external mastic in and around Kirkwall, with old sealant always removed completely and a 12-month guarantee.
- Damp patches traced to an open external joint
- Failed seals between different materials
- Plants rooting in failed movement joints
What happens on the day
We keep the work tidy and contained to the area we are working on, so you can get on with your day. Expect the work to take anything from a few hours to several days, depending on the building, and we tell you how long to leave it before we go. A visit in Kirkwall needs three things planned: access, parking and where the work is. Outdoor jobs need a dry day, so they can move if the weather turns.
- We inspect the joints and agree which need resealing and how they’ll be reached.
- Old sealant and any debris are cut and raked out.
- Both sides are cleaned back to sound material and primed if needed.
- Closed-cell backing rod is fitted to set the depth and stop three-sided bonding.
- We gun in a flexible exterior sealant in a colour that suits the wall and tool it neatly.
How to prepare
- Plan for the work area to be out of bounds to pets and children
- Let us know about earlier repairs to the joints
- Mention any leaks or damp you’ve noticed
Get a quote
Need a quote? Please drop us a line at info@mrmastic.co.uk with a few details. We will explain what we’d do and give you a clear price before any work starts.
Advice
How we handle external mastic in Kirkwall
Joints in render and cladding are easy to overlook until a damp patch appears. We look over the joints, agree the ones to renew and reseal with a flexible, weatherproof product in a matching colour. If you’re dealing with rain getting behind render or cladding at a joint and brick movement joints where the sealant has split, we can put it right, on copings & trims, brickwork movement joints and joints between brick and frames alike.
Scottish towns like Kirkwall mix older stone buildings with newer estates of brick, render and uPVC trims. Older buildings tend to leak at gutter joints, newer ones at dried-out movement joints.
You’re covered for a year from the day we finish. If anything is not right with it, email us at info@mrmastic.co.uk.
- Place
- Kirkwall (KW15)
- Wider area
- Orkney Islands
- Cover
- A year, on every job
- Quotes
- A clear price before we start
- info@mrmastic.co.uk
- Page updated
- 26 October 2026
Why act early in Kirkwall
Running new sealant over the old bead rarely lasts. New sealant doesn’t bond well to old, weathered sealant, so the old joint is cut out fully first. Scottish weather finds any gap, and in a town like Kirkwall, failed outside joints soon let damp into walls. Inside, a failed seal around a bath or shower lets water into floors and ceilings.
A failed joint rarely gets cheaper to fix by waiting. If you are unsure, drop us a line at info@mrmastic.co.uk for an honest opinion and a quote.
Why us?
- Neat joints and a tidy finish
- We agree the colour with you first
- Colour picked to suit the job
- Sanitary silicone with an anti-fungal additive in wet areas
Read what affects the cost or our reviews.
Common problems we fix in Kirkwall
Sometimes a movement joint was filled with mortar or a rigid filler by mistake. With the joint locked solid, the movement turns into cracks elsewhere in the wall.
People usually contact us when they notice one of these:
- Failed seals between different materials
- Panel joints letting water in
- Sealant pulling away from one side of the joint
- Movement joints with cracked, split or missing sealant
If you look after a building such as Kirkwall Grammar School, movement joints, cladding joints and gutters on larger buildings need the same care as a house’s.
Questions to ask before booking
- What insurance they hold
- What happens if the job turns out different
- How the surfaces are prepared before sealing
- Who turns up on the day
What affects the cost of external mastic
We quote each job individually. This is what makes a difference:
- Any mould that needs treating
- The type of sealant required
- How many areas need sealing
- Whether old sealant or filler has to be cut out
A few things move the cost up or down: the old material and how easily it comes out, whether mould needs treating, and whether the work is at height. Your quote takes all of that into account.
What to tell us for a quote
To help us quote quickly, let us know:
- Any previous sealing or DIY work
- If it’s domestic, commercial or a hotel
- The rough size of the job
- What the problem is, such as mould, gaps, leaks or cracking
Every job is quoted individually, so the first step is telling us about yours. Simply drop us a line at info@mrmastic.co.uk and describe the job, and photos are welcome.
Kirkwall buildings and the weather
Kirkwall is within about 2 miles of the coast, where wind-driven rain is a fact of life and, nearer the shore, so is salt air. Both are hard on movement joints and outside wall joints, which can dry out and crack sooner where a building faces the weather. Island weather, with its wind and salt spray, is tough on movement joints and outside wall joints.
Homes close to Paterson Church include some older properties, and an extension built onto an older house moves differently, and the joint between them takes the strain.
Kirkwall is in the Orkney Islands. We provide external mastic to homeowners, landlords and businesses in Kirkwall and the surrounding area. Kirkwall is one of 51 towns and villages in the Orkney Islands we cover for external mastic.
Postcode districts we cover here for external mastic: KW15. If you need external mastic at a property on Main Street, Sommerville Square and High Street or anywhere close by, we can help. Kirkwall is on the A960 and A961, so it’s easy for us to get to with everything needed for external mastic. We also cover the places around Kirkwall: Blackhill (1 mile west), Greenigoe (3 miles south-west), Balfour (4 miles north-east), Tankerness (4 miles east) and Toab (5 miles south-east). Being one of the Orkney Islands’s larger places, Kirkwall has every kind of property, from flats to offices. Remote and island addresses need a little more planning, so tell us where you are when you ask for a quote.
Around Kirkwall
In Kirkwall, that means homes and buildings near Orkney Library and Archive. Other landmarks nearby include Balfour Hospital (0.5 miles south-west) and Bishop's Palace (less than half a mile south-west). Not far away are Gallow Ha' and Loomi Shun.
Aftercare tips
Joint life depends on how it’s used and looked after. Here’s what we suggest:
- Keep water from gutters off the wall
- Look over the joints every year, ideally after winter
- Check the sealant is paintable before painting near it
- Never let anyone fill a movement joint with mortar
Follow the cure time we give you before the joint is knocked or disturbed. The surface skins over quickly, but full cure takes longer.
A joint that has stopped moving pushes the movement elsewhere, generally as cracking in the brickwork or render nearby. Resealing it early helps prevent that.
Work for landlords, hotels and businesses
For anyone letting property in or around Kirkwall, jobs at different addresses can be quoted together. Send us the addresses and the work at each.
From a single let to a portfolio, the work is the same standard: old sealant fully removed, joints prepared properly and a 12-month guarantee.
Towns and villages near Kirkwall
What else we do in Kirkwall
What sealant work cannot fix
A few problems are outside what sealant work can do:
- Adding movement joints to masonry that has none
- Cracked brickwork or render that needs a builder or plasterer
- Loose or hollow render, which needs re-rendering
If in doubt, email us at info@mrmastic.co.uk and we will say what we think.
Where we work in Kirkwall
- Copings & trims
- Brickwork movement joints
- Concrete & block
- Render & cladding joints
- Joints between brick and frames
- Façade panels
Questions from Kirkwall
Does living near the coast affect external mastic in Kirkwall?
Coastal weather is harder on outside sealant: there’s more wind-driven rain and, closer to the shore, salt in the air. Choosing the right sealant for the frame and wall, laid at the right depth, helps it last.
Do you cover Kirkwall for external mastic?
Yes. We work across all of Scotland, and Kirkwall is part of that. Just send an email to info@mrmastic.co.uk with a few details of the job.
Do you use backing rod?
The foam is closed-cell backing rod. It keeps the sealant at the right depth and bonded to the sides only, which would stop it stretching.
When will the joints need doing again?
That varies with the weather the wall faces, how much it moves and the sealant used. Sealant is a maintenance item, so check the joints once a year.
Can you reach joints on upper floors?
That depends on the building and the joints. Where joints can be reached safely, we’ll do them. Tell us about the building and we’ll confirm what access is needed.
Where do you work from?
Our base is Crawley, with over 20 years’ experience. We work across South East England, London and Scotland.
Can you seal joints between two different materials?
Yes. Where different materials meet is one of the most common joints we seal. The sealant is chosen to bond to both sides with primer where required.
Do you work for landlords and businesses?
Yes. We work in homes, commercial premises and hotels.