Buildings For Life Ltd
07853 945013

Brickwork in Hampshire

Brickwork and Natural Stone, Laid by a Bricklayer

Pete Bartlett started out as a bricklayer over 40 years ago, and brick and stone are still the heart of Buildings For Life. New walls, careful matching on old houses, repointing, arches and chimneys.

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What customers said after the job

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Brickwork is where Pete Bartlett started. He learned the trade as a bricklayer over 40 years ago and has spent the last 15 years on high-end and natural stone work. His perpends line up and his joints are struck evenly from first course to last.

We are a family-run company in Hedge End and take on brickwork of every size, from a single garden wall or extension shell to lime repointing on a Victorian front or a flint panel. Pete prices each job himself and runs it on site.

New Brick Walls and Extensions

Most new walls on houses are cavity walls: facing brick outside, insulated cavity, blockwork inside. For the full sequence from footings to roof see our house extensions page.

  • Stainless steel wall ties bedded in as the walls rise
  • Cavity kept clear of mortar droppings so damp cannot bridge across
  • Damp proof course at least 150mm above finished ground, lapped and continuous
  • Engineering brick below the damp proof course where there is splashback
  • Lintel, cavity tray and weep vents over every window and door
  • Stretcher bond on new cavity walls, or your house pattern reproduced

Matching Old Brick and Mortar

Matching is where a bricklayer's eye counts. Older houses were built in imperial bricks, slightly taller than modern metric ones, so a new brick will not line up course for course.

  • Reclaimed or imperial-size bricks where the heights differ
  • A sample panel laid beside the old wall before any bulk order
  • Bricks blended from several packs so the wall weathers evenly
  • Flemish or English bond reproduced on new cavity walls using cut headers
  • Sand colour, lime or cement proportion and joint finish all matched
  • Trial mortar batches dried out before deciding: wet mortar always looks darker

Natural Stone Work

Pete has spent the last 15 years on high-end and natural stone. Every piece is a different shape and the joints are judged by eye. Garden walls and paving are on our patios and garden walls page.

  • Flint knapped or laid as whole cobbles, with brick quoins and lacing courses
  • Flint built in lime mortar, a few courses a day so joints are not squeezed
  • Sandstone, limestone and reclaimed walling stone
  • New stone walls and stone-faced extensions
  • Repairs to flint and stone boundary walls, matched to the original coursing
  • Stone cills, copings and heads set into brickwork

Repointing and Repairs

Pointing is the sacrificial part of a wall. Once the joints are recessed and crumbling, water gets into the brick and the wall starts to decay.

  • Natural hydraulic lime on pre-war houses, matched in colour and texture
  • Hard cement on soft brick traps moisture and blows the faces off
  • Joints raked to an even depth without damaging the arrises
  • Mortar packed in layers, then finished once it has firmed up
  • Spalled bricks cut out and replaced; stable cracks stitched with helical bars
  • Blocked gutters, leaking downpipes and raised ground sorted first

Piers, Arches, Chimneys and Detailing

The details give a Victorian or Edwardian house its character, and they are the first thing people notice when they are missing from new work.

  • Piers. Plumb on every face, off a proper footing, bonded in rather than butted on
  • Arches. Segmental, semi-circular and flat, joints radiating evenly from the centre
  • Soldier arches. Carried on a lintel over wider openings so they cannot drop
  • Chimneys. Leaning or frost-damaged stacks rebuilt, new pots, flaunching and lead
  • Detailing. Dentil and string courses, brick-on-edge copings, corbelling, tumbled-in buttresses

How a Brickwork Job Runs

It starts with Pete looking at the wall: brick size, bond, mortar, joint finish, and any movement, damp or earlier repairs. On new work he checks the setting out against the footings.

  • Bricks for matching work tracked down before a course is laid
  • Sample panels built and agreed with you before the full order
  • Deliveries checked against the sample, because batches vary
  • No mortar laid with frost due; finished work covered each evening
  • Bricks damped and fresh work shaded in hot weather; lime protected for days
  • Wall brushed down, mortar smudges cleaned off, site left tidy

How It Works

From first look to finished wall

Three steps, with Pete involved at every one of them.

  1. Tell us the job

    Use Quick Quote Online or call with a few lines about the wall or building and, if you can, some photos. Old brickwork is much easier to discuss when we can see the bond and pointing.

  2. Site visit and written quote

    Pete visits, looks at the brick, mortar and ground, and talks through the choices, such as lime or cement and new or reclaimed brick. You then get a written quote setting out what is included.

  3. Build and sign-off

    For matching work we lay a sample panel first and agree it with you, then build course by course, protected while the mortar cures. We clean down and walk the work with you.

Ready when you are. Quick Quote Online

New brick wall with fresh mortar joints along a side return

Areas We Serve

Brickwork around Hedge End and the nearby villages

We are based in Hedge End and take on brickwork and stone jobs across the surrounding area, including Botley, West End, Bishops Waltham, Fair Oak, Bursledon, Chandlers Ford, Winchester and Romsey. The older villages to the north and east have plenty of flint and lime-built walls, while the estates closer to Southampton are mostly cavity brick. We work on both, and the approach changes with the house.

  • Hedge End
  • Bishops Waltham
  • Botley
  • Upham
  • West End
  • Warsash
  • Hamble-le-Rice
  • Chandlers Ford
  • Romsey
  • Winchester
  • Chilworth
  • Southampton
  • Fair Oak
  • Bursledon
  • Curdridge
  • Netley
  • Bishopstoke
  • Eastleigh
  • Swanmore
  • Hythe
  • Shedfield
  • Marchwood
  • Swanwick
  • Whiteley
  • Rownhams
  • North Baddesley
  • Sarisbury
  • Compton
  • Holbury
  • Totton
  • Locks Heath
  • Dibden
  • Titchfield
  • New Alresford
  • Cheriton
  • Kings Worthy

areas we cover

Related Services

Work that often goes with this

  • New red brick garden wall with piers running along a driveway

    Patios & Garden Walls

    Porcelain and stone patios on a properly dug base, and brick or stone garden walls with piers and copings that stay straight.

    Patios & Garden Walls
  • Extension footprint being dug out beside a semi-detached house with a mini digger

    House Extensions

    Single and two storey extensions, rear, side and wraparound, built to tie into the original house so the join is hard to find.

    House Extensions
  • House renovation with timber cladding above rendered walls and new windows

    Renovation & Refurbishment

    Whole-house renovations, reconfigured layouts, kitchens and joinery, from period cottages to post-war semis.

    Renovation & Refurbishment

FAQ

Brickwork: questions people ask first

Question not here? Quick Quote Online

Can you match the brick on my house for an extension?
In most cases, yes. We start with brick size, since older imperial bricks are taller than modern ones, then colour and texture. We look at new and reclaimed options and lay a sample panel against your wall before ordering. An exact match is not always possible on very old or heavily weathered brick, and we will tell you honestly how close we can get.
Should my old house be repointed in lime or cement?
If the house was built with lime mortar, which is usual on older properties, it should be repointed in lime. Cement is harder and less breathable than soft old brick, so moisture gets trapped and frost damages the brick faces. Newer houses built in cement mortar can be repointed in a matching cement mix.
How long does repointing a house take?
It depends on the size of the house, the state of the joints and the weather. A single elevation might take a week or two, a whole house longer. Lime work cannot be rushed or done in frost, so we plan around the season and give you a realistic timescale with the written quote.
Can brickwork be laid in winter?
Yes, with care. Mortar should not be laid when frost is expected before it has set, and fresh work needs covering overnight. On cold days we stop early or wait. Lime mortar is more sensitive to cold than cement, so larger lime repointing jobs are better planned for spring through to early autumn.
Do you work with flint?
Yes. Flint with brick quoins and lacing courses is common across Hampshire, and Pete has spent 15 years on natural stone work. Flint is laid in lime mortar a few courses at a time, and repairs are matched to the original coursing and type of flint wherever possible.
Do I need approval for new brickwork?
Repointing and like-for-like repairs usually do not need approval. Walls forming part of an extension or new building need building regulations approval, as does widening an opening in a structural wall. Garden walls above certain heights, especially next to a road, can need planning permission, and listed buildings have their own rules. Check with your local planning authority if you are unsure.

Quick Quote Online

Quick Quote for brickwork and stone

Tell us about the wall, the house and what you want done. Photos help. Pete will be in touch to arrange a visit.

  • A written quote before any work starts
  • 10-year warranty on new builds
  • Hedge End, Southampton and the towns around them

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