Midlothian · Scotland
Shawfair External Mastic
We cover Shawfair for sealing brickwork movement joints, render, cladding and façade joints. Old sealant removed completely, joints prepared properly.
- Brick movement joints where the sealant has split
- Joints pointed up with cement by mistake
- Plants rooting in failed movement joints
About our external mastic in Shawfair
For buildings in Shawfair, we reseal external joints of all kinds, from brick movement joints to cladding panels. The preparation is the same whatever the wall: clean, sound faces and a controlled depth. If you are dealing with movement joints with cracked, split or missing sealant and rain getting behind render or cladding at a joint, we can put it right, whatever the surface.
External sealant needs dry surfaces, so outdoor work around Shawfair is planned around the weather, and longer journeys are planned in advance. Tell us how to reach each wall, gutter and roofline.
Whatever the size of the job, it’s backed by our one-year guarantee in Shawfair and across Midlothian.
- Location
- Shawfair (EH22, EH21, EH15)
- Wider area
- Midlothian
- Guarantee
- 12 months on all our work
- Quotes
- A clear quote up front
- info@mrmastic.co.uk
- Updated
- 26 October 2026
Why act early in Shawfair
Low-modulus sealants stretch easily, so they put less strain on the joint edges. That matters on brick, render and concrete, which can be weaker at the face. Too stiff a sealant can pull at the edges and break them. In a place like Shawfair, small leaks are easy to put off, but water behind a failed seal does the most damage when nobody’s watching.
What you pay reflects the work, not guesswork. That’s why we ask about the job first.
What you get with us
- Domestic, commercial and hotel work
- Approved under the ARBOMaster scheme
- Tidy, careful work
- Anti-fungal sanitary silicone in wet areas
How the visit works
Once we’re on site, we check the joints match what you told us. If anything is different, we explain it before carrying on. Most jobs then take a few hours for a handful of joints, longer for a whole elevation. In smaller Scottish places, parking is normally less of an issue than access and distance. Let us know how to find you and how to reach the joints, and the visit is planned around that.
- First, the joints are inspected and the access agreed.
- We cut out the old mastic and rake out anything in the joint.
- Joint faces are cleaned back and primed if the sealant needs it.
- We fit closed-cell backing rod to control the depth.
- We apply the sealant, tool it and check the whole run.
Getting ready for the visit
- Tell us if parking is tricky
- Clear the area around the work
- Let us know if you’ve seen damp or leaks
Getting a quote
For a quick quote, get us on the phone, or email us if that is easier. Describe what needs sealing and we will explain what’s involved before giving you a price.
Related advice
Should I try it myself first?
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 doesn’t work out, we can still put it right.
Sealing over old silicone is the commonest DIY error. Silicone doesn’t stick to old silicone, so it peels away and traps moisture behind it. Everything old must be removed first.
Surface by surface
Brickwork movement joints
Brick walls have vertical movement joints to absorb expansion. They’re resealed over backing rod with a low-modulus sealant.
Joints between dissimilar materials
Brick against render, concrete against metal, stone against timber: every change of material is a joint. We seal the joint with a flexible exterior sealant.
FAQs for Shawfair
Is external mastic in a coastal place like Shawfair any different?
Coastal homes put outside sealant through more weather than inland ones, so the choice of sealant and the preparation matter even more. Walls facing the sea are generally the first to need attention.
Will you come out to Shawfair?
Yes, smaller places are covered as well as towns. Our work covers the whole of Scotland. Let us know about access, parking and anything unusual about getting there when you book.
Is the work guaranteed?
Yes. Every job comes with our one-year guarantee.
Will the old sealant be removed?
Yes. Sealing over old sealant is the main reason resealing fails early, so we never do it.
What do you put in the joint?
Products from Arbo and Everbuild, among others, picked for each joint. We will tell you what we’re using and why.
Where is Mr Mastic based?
We are a Crawley-based firm, with over 20 years’ experience. We work across South East England, London and Scotland.
Can landlords and businesses book you?
Yes, regularly. We can quote for several properties at once.
Can a movement joint be filled with mortar?
No. Rigid materials cannot move with the wall. If it has already been filled, we can generally cut it out and reseal it.
Common problems we fix in Shawfair
A lot of failed joints come down to preparation: dusty or wet faces, no primer where one was needed, or old sealant left in. The sealant never bonds properly.
Most people get in touch after spotting something like this:
- Sealant pulling away from one side of the joint
- Movement joints with cracked, split or missing sealant
- Damp patches traced to an open external joint
- Old sealant gone brittle and cracked
In the older streets around Newton Church, older walls, gutters and the joints where extensions meet them need a flexible sealant.
Comparing quotes
- What happens if they find a problem under the old sealant
- Whether they seal over old material or remove it
- How much experience the applicator has
- How the colour is chosen
Landlord and commercial work in Shawfair
We also work for property managers and facilities teams. We can quote a run of properties together, and we are fully insured for the work.
From a single let to a portfolio, you get the same standard of work: old sealant fully removed, joints prepared properly and a one-year guarantee.
How to look after the new joints
After the cure time, these simple habits help:
- Keep water from gutters off the wall
- Tell anyone working on the walls about the movement joints
- Keep soil, plants and ivy away from the joints
- Wash walls gently around the sealant
Avoid pressure-washing straight into the joints. High-pressure water can lift the edges.
Gaps, plants or missing sealant in a joint are worth getting looked at. Earlier resealing means a smaller job and a better result.
Places near Shawfair
Also in Shawfair
Outside joints around Shawfair
Shawfair is close to 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. Under the Repairing Standard, private landlords in Scotland have to keep homes wind and watertight, and sound outside sealant is part of that.
Letting a property close to Shawfair station? Then outside joints that have cracked can let damp into a rental, so check them between lets. Schools such as Castlebrae Community High School are buildings too, and its movement joints, gutters and trims need looking after like any other building’s.
Shawfair is about 2 miles south-west of Musselburgh, in Midlothian. Our applicators cover external mastic for homes and businesses in Shawfair, as part of our work across Midlothian. Shawfair is one of 33 places in Midlothian where we work.
Jobs for external mastic in EH22, EH21 and EH15 works the same way as everywhere else we cover. Whether your property is on Redcroft Road, Archway Avenue and Whitehill Road or a nearby road, our applicators can take on the job. Shawfair is on the A6106, which makes it straightforward to reach. We also cover the places around Shawfair: Newton Village (1 mile south), Millerhill (1 mile south-east), Newcraighall (1 mile north), Old Craighall (1 mile east) and Joppa (2 miles north). We also work in nearby towns such as Bonnyrigg (4 miles south), Penicuik (8 miles south-west), Loanhead (4 miles south-west), Gorebridge (6 miles south), Newtongrange (4 miles south) and Mayfield (4 miles south-east). As one of the bigger places in Midlothian, Shawfair has every kind of property, from flats to offices.
Landmarks near Shawfair
In Shawfair, that means homes and buildings near Drum Park and the streets around them. Shawfair has its own railway station: Shawfair station. Other landmarks nearby include Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh (1.7 miles west) and Craigmillar Castle (1.9 miles west). The countryside around Shawfair includes Duddingston Loch and The New Leaf Co-op.