Gillingham · Kent
Brick arch repairs in Gillingham
A dropped keystone over a front door is a familiar sight on older streets, in Gillingham and beyond, and it rarely fixes itself. We look at whether the arch bricks are sound and whether the wall either side has moved, then recommend the lighter repair where it will work.
Guide price from£450per arch inc VAT
- Postcodes
- ME7, ME8
- Population
- about 100,000
- Area
- Kent
- Pricing region
- South East
How do local ground conditions affect brick arch repairs in Gillingham?
Gillingham (ME7, ME8) has around 100,000 residents and sits in Kent. If you are just outside Gillingham, we also cover Strood (3 miles), Gravesend (8 miles) and Maidstone (9 miles).
Much of Kent sits on clay that shrinks in dry summers and swells in wet winters. Parts of Kent lie on a former coalfield, so a coal mining search is worth checking if movement has no obvious cause. Typical buildings in Kent: Victorian terraces in the Medway towns, weatherboarded and Wealden houses, 1930s semis and seaside bungalows.
What to look for before calling about brick arch repairs
- The centre bricks of an arch sitting lower than the rest
- Gaps opening between arch bricks at the top or bottom edge
- A flat arch that has started to sag into a shallow curve
Brick arch repairs prices in Gillingham
Guide prices below are for homes in Gillingham, on South East rates and including VAT. A survey or good photos let us turn them into a fixed written price.
| Item | Guide price | Per |
|---|---|---|
| Stitching and reinforcing a sound archest. | £450 – £1,350 | per arch |
| Rebuilding an arch (one side) | £1,000 – £1,450 | per opening |
| Rebuilding an arch (both sides) | £2,000 – £2,900 | per opening |
How we usually approach brick arch repairs
Reinforcing a sound arch
Where the arch has only dropped slightly and the bricks are sound, stainless helical bars are bonded into the bed joints just above it, extending well into the wall on each side. The bars turn the courses above into a reinforced band of masonry, so the arch no longer has to carry the full load. Joints are repointed to match.
Best for: Slightly dropped or cracked arches with sound bricks
Rebuilding both faces
Where the arch shows inside as well as outside, or a rotten timber behind it has also failed, both faces are rebuilt. The inner timber is replaced with a suitable lintel, and the outer arch is reformed in front. The two are worked in sequence so the wall is supported throughout.
Best for: Arches with a failed timber or inner face
What happens during brick arch repairs, step by step?
Look at the arch closely
Straight-on photos of the arch and the wall either side show us how far it has dropped, whether the bricks are sound and whether the cause seems to be the arch itself or the wall around it.
Choose reinforce or rebuild
We recommend reinforcement where the arch is sound and only slightly displaced, and a rebuild where it has dropped badly or bricks are loose. If the wall beside the opening is moving, that is dealt with first.
Strike the former and point
Once the mortar has cured enough, the former and props are removed. Joints are finished to match the surrounding wall, and any cracks running from the arch into the wall are repaired at the same visit.
Rules for brick arch repairs in England
Like-for-like repairs such as crack stitching and repointing do not usually need building control approval in England, but anything that changes or strengthens the structure, such as underpinning or rebuilding a wall, does. If the work touches a party wall, the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 may apply.
Questions about brick arch repairs in Gillingham
What is the price of brick arch repairs in Gillingham?
Guide prices for brick arch repairs in Gillingham start from about £450 per arch, including VAT, on South East rates. Your fixed written price follows photos or a survey and depends on the extent of the work and access.
Do you carry out brick arch repairs in Gillingham?
We do. Gillingham and the surrounding area are covered, including nearby Strood and Gravesend. A free initial assessment from your photos is the first step.
Does the ground around Gillingham cause cracking?
North Kent sits on London Clay, central Kent on Gault and Weald Clays and the Downs on chalk, so shrinkable clay is widespread. East Kent around Deal and Dover had a small deep coalfield, worked until the late 1980s. Only an investigation can say why a particular building has moved.
Can a dropped arch be repaired without rebuilding it?
Yes, if the drop is small and the brickwork is in good condition. Bars bonded into the joints above can take the load off the arch and hold it in place. If the bricks are loose or the arch has dropped badly, rebuilding is the more reliable repair.
Should a brick arch be repaired with lime mortar?
On older houses built with soft bricks and lime, yes, in most cases. Lime mortar lets the wall breathe and is weaker than the brick, so any movement or frost damage happens in the joints rather than the bricks. Modern hard brickwork can take a cement-based mortar.
More repairs we carry out in Gillingham
- Chimney stack repairs
- Structural crack repairs
- Mining subsidence repairs
- Concrete repairs
- Wall tie replacement
Brick arch repairs near Gillingham
Have several dropped arches along one Gillingham elevation? We can price them together and suggest the order that makes sense.