Scottish Borders · Scotland
External Mastic in Melrose
Sealing brickwork movement joints, render, cladding and façade joints for homeowners, landlords and businesses in Melrose. ARBOMaster approved applicators, fully insured, with a 12-month guarantee.
- Damp patches traced to an open external joint
- Leaking joints around cladding and façade panels
- Movement joints with cracked, split or missing sealant
External mastic in Melrose, done properly
We are ARBOMaster approved applicators, and each external joint gets a sealant suited to it. Porous or awkward surfaces are primed where the sealant needs it. If you have leaking joints around cladding and façade panels and rigid filler in a joint that should flex, we can help, on render & cladding joints, façade panels and concrete & block alike.
Stone walls need a stone-friendly sealant, as acetoxy products can attack some stone. Newer houses need their movement joints and roofline trims kept sound.
Every job comes with our 12-month guarantee.
- Place
- Melrose (TD6)
- Region
- Scottish Borders
- Cover
- 12 months on all our work
- Quotes
- A clear price before any work starts
- info@mrmastic.co.uk
- Page updated
- 26 October 2026
What affects the cost of external mastic
Call for a quick quote. The main things that affect it are:
- When we can work, for business premises
- How much old sealant there is and how hard it is to remove
- Access and height
- How many areas need sealing
Rather than a set price list, we price the job in front of us: how many joints, what’s in them now and how we reach them. The price is agreed before we begin.
Asking for a quote
Before you ask for a quote, have a think about:
- What’s wrong with the joints now
- Photos by email, if that is easy
- Whether it’s a home or a business
- Any access issues, like height or stairs
The more we know about the job, the more useful the quote. Tell us where the job is, what’s wrong and how much there is, and email pictures if that is easy.
How it works
Before we leave, we go over the finished joints with you and explain the cure time. The visit itself usually takes anything from a few hours to several days, depending on the building, depending on the size of the job. For a place like Melrose, longer drives are planned in advance. Tell us about tracks, gates, a ferry crossing or anything unusual about getting there.
- First we look over the joints with you, agree which to renew and talk through access.
- Old sealant and any debris are cut and raked out.
- The joint faces are cleaned and primed where the sealant needs it.
- We push in closed-cell backing rod so the sealant is the right depth and bonds to the sides only.
- We gun in a flexible exterior sealant in a colour that suits the wall and tool it neatly.
Before we arrive
- Let us know if you’ve seen damp or leaks
- Keep pets and children clear of the area while we work
- Move anything stored near the joints
Ask for a quote
Quotes start with a quick conversation. Describe the problem, the location and the size of the job, and we’ll talk you through what we’d do. When it suits you, send an email to info@mrmastic.co.uk.
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Common questions in Melrose
Do you cover smaller places like Melrose?
Yes, we do. Our work covers the whole of Scotland, and smaller places are part of that. The journey is planned ahead, so it helps to know about access.
Can you do external mastic in Melrose?
Yes. We work across all of Scotland, and Melrose 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 price.
Do the sealants smell?
Some sealants have a smell while they cure, but it fades. Ventilation helps.
Can you match the colour of my brickwork?
The sealant colour is picked to suit the wall, so the joint sits quietly in the wall. There’s a wide choice of exterior colours.
I’m a tenant. Can you help?
We’re happy to deal with the tenant, landlord or agent. Get your landlord’s agreement first.
How long does external mastic take?
Most jobs take anything from a few hours to several days, depending on the building, including preparation and clearing up. Your quote will say how long we expect yours to take.
Is it messy?
Not at all. We work neatly, protect the area around the joints and tidy up afterwards.
Can a movement joint be filled with mortar?
No. Rigid materials cannot move with the wall and the joint fails. If it has already been filled, we can normally cut it out and reseal it.
Surface by surface
Brickwork movement joints
People sometimes point up a brick movement joint by mistake. If that is happened, we rake it out and reseal it properly if the joint can be cleared.
Concrete and blockwork
Concrete and block walls shrink as they dry and move with temperature. We reseal their joints with backing rod and a flexible product.
Looking after it afterwards
After the cure time, these simple habits help:
- Point out the joints to other trades
- Keep high-pressure jets off the joints
- Make sure movement joints are not pointed over
- Leave the joints unpainted unless we’ve said otherwise
Don’t let soil, plants or ivy build up against the new joints. Anything that holds water against the joint wears it out sooner.
Leaks behind façade panels and render often go unseen. By the time there’s a damp patch, the damage can be well established, so it’s worth resealing at the first signs.
Signs you need external mastic in Melrose
Some movement joints have been pointed up with mortar, often by someone who didn’t know what it was for. The joint cannot move, so the wall cracks somewhere else instead.
It’s worth asking for a quote if you see:
- Moss and dirt in joints with no sealant left
- Joints where the bead has come unstuck
- Old sealant gone brittle and cracked
- Failed sealant between panels on a façade
Around Melrose, as everywhere, external mastic is only as good as the preparation behind it.
What your quote should include
- Whether all the old sealant comes out first
- What insurance they hold
- What preparation is included
- What happens if the job turns out different
External mastic in Melrose: local notes
Harled (roughcast) walls are common in Scotland, and joints where harling meets other materials need a sealant that can grip and flex. Private landlords in Scotland must meet the Repairing Standard, which includes keeping a home wind and watertight, and sound outside sealant is part of that.
For landlords with property near Tweedbank station, failed wall and movement joints let damp in, so they’re worth checking between tenancies.
Melrose is about 3 miles east of Galashiels, in the Scottish Borders. Whether you are in the middle of Melrose or further out, we cover external mastic for every kind of property, from flats and houses to offices and hotels. Across the Scottish Borders, we cover 89 places, Melrose among them. Our Edinburgh page covers work nearby, about 30 miles away.
We work across the TD6 postcode area for external mastic. Streets in the area include High Street, Market Square and St Dunstan's Park, and we cover them all. Melrose is on the B6359 and B6361, so it’s easy for us to get to. We also cover Gattonside (1 mile north), Darnick (1 mile west), Newstead (1 mile east), Tweedbank (2 miles west) and Bowden (2 miles south). Within a short drive, we also cover Galashiels (3 miles west), Hawick (12 miles south), Kelso (11 miles east), Selkirk (6 miles south-west), Jedburgh (11 miles south-east) and Wilton (12 miles south).
Near you in Melrose
For rail, the closest station is Tweedbank station, about 1.5 miles west of the centre. Well-known places in the area include Commendators House Museum (within half a mile east) and Castle Holydean (2.4 miles south). Not far away are Eildon Hill North and Bemersyde Moss.
When it is not the sealant
We will always be straight with you, so here’s what new sealant will not do:
- Subsidence or other structural problems
- Rising or penetrating damp from elsewhere in the wall
- Cracking across the wall rather than at a joint
Not sure which it is? You can email us at info@mrmastic.co.uk and we will tell you honestly.
Where we work in Melrose
- Concrete & block
- Copings & trims
- Joints between brick and frames
- Brickwork movement joints
- Façade panels
- Render & cladding joints
DIY versus a professional finish
Some sealant jobs are within reach of a careful DIYer, like a short, easy-to-reach joint indoors. The common mistakes are sealing over old sealant, sealing a damp joint and using far too much.
Too much sealant is as bad as too little. A thick, smeared bead looks untidy and does not move well, and the joint depth matters as much as the finish.