Shetland Islands · Scotland
Mail External Mastic
External mastic across Mail and nearby, with old sealant always removed completely and a one-year guarantee.
- Plants rooting in failed movement joints
- Rain getting behind render or cladding at a joint
- Leaking joints around cladding and façade panels
External mastic for homes and businesses in Mail
Joints between dissimilar materials, like brick against render or concrete against a steel frame, see movement from both sides. A flexible exterior sealant takes up that movement. We work on façade panels, brickwork movement joints and copings & trims, and the jobs we see most are rigid filler in a joint that should flex and cracked joints where brick meets render or frames.
Older stone buildings need a sealant that suits the stone, not an acetoxy product that can mark or attack it. Newer houses need their movement joints and roofline trims kept sound.
A one-year guarantee comes as standard, so you’re covered after we’ve gone.
- Location
- Mail (ZE2)
- Region
- Shetland Islands
- Guarantee
- A year, on every job
- Quote
- A clear price before work begins
- info@mrmastic.co.uk
- Updated
- 26 October 2026
Your questions about external mastic in Mail
Will you come out to Mail?
Yes, we do. We work across all of Scotland, islands included, and smaller places are part of that. The journey is planned ahead, so it helps to know about access.
Does the coastal weather in Mail affect outside sealant?
Coastal homes put outside sealant through more weather than inland ones, so preparation and the right sealant matter all the more. It’s worth checking the walls that face the sea first.
Do you take out the old sealant first?
Yes. All of the old material is cut out and the joint cleaned.
What is backing rod for?
Backing rod goes into deeper joints as a matter of course. It sets the sealant depth and prevents three-sided bonding, so the joint can move.
Do you hold any approvals?
Yes. We’re an ARBOMaster approved applicator.
What information do you need?
A short description and the location, with pictures by email if possible. We will ask anything else we need to know.
What’s an expansion joint in brickwork?
A vertical gap in a long brick wall is normally a movement joint. It lets the bricks expand without cracking and needs a flexible seal, not mortar.
Can you do several jobs on one visit?
Yes. Just list everything you need.
Signs you need external mastic in Mail
A lot of failed joints come down to preparation: joint faces that were dusty or damp, unprimed where they needed it, or still carrying old sealant. The new sealant then lets go long before it should.
The most common problems we see are:
- Panel joints letting water in
- Sealant that has lost its bond to the brick or render
- Plants rooting in failed movement joints
- Movement joints with cracked, split or missing sealant
Homes close to Mail Church include some older properties, and old and new materials meet at the roofline and walls, which is where sealant earns its keep.
Questions to ask before you book
- What insurance they hold
- How long the guarantee is
- Whether you can choose the colour
- How the joint is cleaned and prepared
What we do, step by step
Before we leave, we go over the finished joints with you. The work normally takes anything from a few hours to several days, depending on the building, depending on how much there is to do. Outdoor work around Mail depends on the weather, as sealant needs a dry surface, so an outdoor job can move if the forecast changes. Indoor work goes ahead whatever the weather.
- First, the joints are inspected and the access agreed.
- Every bit of old sealant and any mortar or debris is cut out.
- Joint faces are cleaned back and primed if the sealant needs it.
- Backing rod sized to the joint goes in to set the depth.
- We apply the sealant, tool it and check the whole run.
Getting ready for the visit
- Tell us if parking is tricky
- On commercial sites, let us know about site rules
- Tell us about any previous sealing or DIY attempts
Get a quote
To get a quote, drop us a line at info@mrmastic.co.uk with the location and a short description of the problem. You’ll have a clear quote before any work starts.
Advice
Keeping the joints in good condition
A little care helps the new joints last. Our advice:
- Keep high-pressure jets off the joints
- Never let anyone fill a movement joint with mortar
- Keep water from gutters off the wall
- Point out the joints to other trades
Keep the joints clear of soil, plants and climbing growth. Anything that holds water against the joint wears it out sooner.
Small splits are the time to act. At that stage it’s a simple cut out and reseal before water has had years to get in.
DIY sealant or a professional job?
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.
A DIY attempt doesn’t rule out a professional job. We remove it and do the joint properly, so just mention it when you contact us.
Quotes for external mastic in Mail
Your quote is based on your job. We take into account:
- Whether there’s mould to deal with
- The number of rooms or windows
- Whether old sealant or filler has to be cut out
- The number and length of the joints
The cost depends on how much there is to do, how hard the old material is to remove and access to the work. You will have a clear quote before any work starts, so you know where you stand.
Asking for a quote
There’s no need for technical detail. It helps if you can tell us:
- Whether it has been sealed before
- How many joints, rooms or windows are involved
- Access, such as stairs, a lift or height
- Pictures of the joints, sent by email
If you are in Mail and need external mastic, drop us a line at info@mrmastic.co.uk. Tell us what the problem is and where, and you’ll get a clear quote before any work starts.
Why act early in Mail
Done well, a resealed joint is a neat, straight line that suits the wall. A hurried job with smeared edges and no backing looks worse and fails sooner so it’s worth doing right. In a place like Mail, small leaks are easy to put off, but water behind a failed seal does the most damage when nobody’s watching.
Leaving a failed joint usually makes the job bigger, not smaller, because water and mould keep working on it. If you’re not sure whether it needs doing, email us at info@mrmastic.co.uk for an honest opinion and a quote.
Why choose Mr Mastic in Mail
- Experience in homes, commercial sites and hotels
- We never seal over old sealant
- White, clear, grey or another colour, product permitting
- Sanitary silicone with an anti-fungal additive in wet areas
Read what affects the cost and our reviews.
Outside joints around Mail
Mail is close to the coast, and homes near the sea take more wind-driven rain, with salt in the air closer to the shore. 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.
Around Mail, as everywhere, external mastic is only as good as the preparation behind it.
Mail is about 9 miles south of Lerwick, in the Shetland Islands. Homes, rented property, offices and hotels in Mail is covered for external mastic. The work is guaranteed for a year. 63 places in the Shetland Islands are on our list.
We work across ZE2 for external mastic and the streets around it. Close by, we work in Bremirehoull (1 mile north), Cunningsburgh (1 mile north), Aithsetter (2 miles north-east), Sandwick (2 miles south) and Hoswick (3 miles south). Larger places within reach include Lerwick (9 miles north), Sound (8 miles north) and Scalloway (7 miles north). If you are somewhere remote, a little more planning is needed, so mention it when you ask for a quote.
Around Mail
For a walk, there’s Loch of Fladdabister.
Landlord and commercial work in Mail
Businesses can book us for washrooms, kitchens, offices and more. For commercial premises, we can talk through working times when we quote.
We also work for property managers and facilities teams. We can quote a run of properties together.