Repointing mid-terrace house 1910 - lime or sand/cement mortar??

there is no cement in lime mortar, to use cement will defeat the purpose of re pointing in lime mortar. and stop you building breathing creating dampness you can match up the lime mortar in your wall. get someone who knows what they are doing. it not hydrated lime its N.H.L.3.5.

Hi your guy is correct that lime is more breath , however a you need to consider the finish as I'm sure your house being mid-terraced and built in 1910 it is proberly built in line mortar,if you use straight forward mix of sand and cement you have the danger of it not blending in with the adjoining property's. I would recommend a mix of 4.1.1 of sand cement and lime in order to blend in. The lime content will give a lighter appearance (if that matches) where as sand and cement may take on a different colour finish even the difference in cement manufacturer say Rugby and blue circle can Finnish different. The best advice if it needs to blend in is to do a small test panel it can always be raked out if it doesn't match. Hope this helps. John

Yes your guy is correct in the breathable aspect! when using cement the bricks have no available movement so when there is natural movement in the building your cement pointing will fail and cause extensive damage to the brickwork which is pointed. lime will reduce cracking and improve breathability!

The previous chap is correct and a test panel is the correct way to go.

Yes a 4 1 1 mix is your best option both guys are correct always get a test panel and make sure it is correct depth before they start pointing