Edinburgh · Scotland
External & façade joints in Marchmont, Edinburgh
External mastic across Marchmont and nearby, with every bit of old sealant taken out first and a 12-month guarantee.
- Damp patches traced to an open external joint
- Weathered mastic that no longer stretches
- Joints where the bead has come unstuck
How we handle external mastic in Marchmont
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 colour to suit. We work on façade panels, brickwork movement joints and copings & trims, and people most often call us about failed seals between different materials and movement joints filled with mortar instead of sealant.
Scotland’s cities also have plenty of modern blocks with rendered or clad walls and sealed movement joints. Around Marchmont, as anywhere, those joints dry out and crack over time, letting water behind the face of the building.
All our work comes with a 12-month guarantee.
- Where
- Marchmont (EH9, EH8, EH3)
- Region
- Edinburgh
- Cover
- A year, on every job
- Price
- A clear quote up front
- info@mrmastic.co.uk
- Page updated
- 26 October 2026
Aftercare tips
Aftercare is simple:
- Avoid pressure-washing directly into sealant joints
- Point out the joints to other trades
- Clear growth from the base of walls and joints
- Deal with leaking gutters that soak the joints below
Don’t paint over the new sealant unless we’ve said the product is paintable. Paint can crack on a flexible joint, and paint can crack as the joint moves.
Once a joint cannot move, the wall finds another way, usually as cracking in the brickwork or render nearby. Resealing it early helps prevent that.
Questions from Marchmont
Is external mastic in a coastal place like Marchmont any different?
Near the sea, outside joints face more wind, rain and salt than they would inland, so preparation and the right sealant matter all the more. Walls facing the sea are usually the first to need attention.
How do repairs to the shared parts of a tenement in Marchmont get organised?
It normally goes through the owners together, or through the factor if the building has one. The Tenements (Scotland) Act 2004 sets the rules for common parts if the deeds do not.
Can tenants book the work?
Yes. Check with your landlord; we can send the quote to them too.
Do you do commercial work?
Yes. We work in offices, washrooms, hotels and other commercial premises, as well as homes. Working times can be discussed when we quote.
How do I get a quote for external mastic in Marchmont?
Every job is different, so each one gets its own quote. To get one, send an email to info@mrmastic.co.uk and tell us what needs doing and where.
Can I do it myself?
You can, for simple jobs. Preparation is everything: all the old sealant out, and a clean, dry joint. If it doesn’t work out, we can redo it.
Do you cover Marchmont?
Yes. We cover Marchmont and the rest of Edinburgh, as part of our work across South East England, London and Scotland. To book, email us at info@mrmastic.co.uk.
Can you seal over the old sealant?
No, because it fails. We remove every bit of old sealant first, so the new joint bonds to clean surfaces.
Nearby places to Marchmont
More services for Marchmont
Can I do it myself?
If you do try it yourself, take your time over the preparation: remove every trace of old sealant, clean and dry the joint, and follow the product’s cure time. If it does not work out, we can still put it right.
Overfilling a joint is a classic DIY mistake. A thick, smeared bead looks untidy and doesn’t move well, and getting the depth right matters as much as the look.
What happens on the day
There’s no need to move everything out, just the space around the work. Everything nearby is protected, and the job takes a few hours for a handful of joints, longer for a whole elevation in most cases. Inside a flat in Marchmont, the job is planned with you; outside, shared parts may need the factor or other owners involved. It helps to know which it is when you get in touch.
- We start by walking round the building and agreeing the joints and the access.
- We cut out the old mastic and rake out anything in the joint.
- The faces are brushed clean and primed where the product requires it.
- We fit closed-cell backing rod to control the depth.
- We apply the sealant, tool it and check the whole run.
Before we arrive
- Let us know about parking restrictions
- Let us know about earlier repairs to the joints
- On commercial sites, let us know about site rules
How to get a quote
For external mastic in Marchmont, send an email to info@mrmastic.co.uk. Tell us what the problem is and where, and we’ll agree the price before any work begins.
Advice
Landlords, agents and businesses in Marchmont
Letting agents often deal with us directly. Tell us the address, the job and how access works and we will quote.
In hotels, rooms out of use cost money, so we plan the work room by room around your bookings where we can. Hotel work is part of what we do, alongside homes and businesses.
Common problems we fix in Marchmont
The wrong product in a moving joint is a classic cause. A stiff, general-purpose sealant can’t cope with a joint that moves a lot, so it pulls away from the edges.
If you can see any of these, it’s time to have the joints looked at:
- Sealant that has lost its bond to the brick or render
- Rigid filler in a joint that should flex
- Rain getting behind render or cladding at a joint
- Brick movement joints where the sealant has split
Rented homes near Edinburgh Waverley station change hands often, and outside joints that have cracked can let damp into a rental, so check them between lets.
What to look for in a quote
- How hidden problems are handled
- Whether they seal over old material or remove it
- Is VAT in the price?
- Who turns up on the day
Marchmont buildings and the weather
Marchmont 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. Harled (roughcast) walls are common in Scotland, and where harling meets frames, pipes and other materials, the joint needs a flexible sealant that grips a rough surface.
Homes close to West St Giles' Parish Church include some older properties, and an extension built onto an older house moves differently, and the joint between them takes the strain. If you look after a building such as Sciennes Primary School, movement joints, cladding joints and gutters on larger buildings need the same care as a house’s.
Marchmont is about 1 mile south-west of Buccleuch, in Edinburgh. Homes, rented property, offices and hotels in Marchmont is covered for external mastic. The work is guaranteed for a year. Our Edinburgh coverage runs to 175 places, and Marchmont is one of them.
Jobs for external mastic in EH9, EH8 and EH3 works the same way as everywhere else we cover. If you need external mastic at a property on Lauder Road, Meadow Lane and Grange Road or anywhere close by, we can help. With the A700 close by, Marchmont is simple for us to get to for external mastic. We also cover Sciennes (1 mile east), The Grange (1 mile south-east), Lauriston (1 mile north), Burgh Muir (1 mile south-east) and Newington (1 mile east). Further out, we also cover Leith (3 miles north), North Leith (3 miles north), Queensferry (9 miles north-west), Timber Bush (3 miles north), South Portobello (3 miles east) and Southhouse (3 miles south-east).
What’s near Marchmont
In Marchmont, that means homes and buildings near Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, 22 pub and St Cuthbert's Church, among other places. Nearby too are The Meadows (less than half a mile north), National Museums Scotland Library (0.6 miles north) and James Gillespie's High School (under half a mile west). Marchmont’s nearest station is Edinburgh Waverley station, roughly 1 mile north. Well-known places in the area include Waverley Mall (1 mile north) and Meadows Dental Clinic (within half a mile south-west). For a walk, there’s Salisbury Crags and Dunsapie Loch.
Surface by surface
Brickwork movement joints
Brick walls have vertical movement joints to absorb expansion. We reseal them with a low-modulus sealant over backing rod.
Render joints
Cracks along render joints let water in behind the coat. A sound joint keeps the render dry behind and protects the render itself.
What affects the cost of external mastic
We do not publish a price list. The quote depends on:
- The old material and how stubborn it is
- How many areas need sealing
- The type of sealant required
- How easy the joints are to reach
We don’t show prices on the website, because the cost depends so much on the job itself. Call for a quick quote and we will talk you through it.
What to tell us for a quote
When you contact us, these details help:
- Photos by email, if that’s easy
- What’s wrong with the joints now
- Access, such as stairs, a lift or height
- The type of property
For a quick quote, get us on the phone, or email us if that’s easier. Describe what needs sealing and we will explain what’s involved and send you a clear quote.