Lime pointing in Taunton, done the way the wall was first built.

RFA Conservation has been pointing and repointing historic walls across Taunton, Somerset and the wider South West since 1998. We work exclusively in breathable lime — hot-mixed quicklime for the softest historic fabric, and natural hydraulic limes (NHL 2 or 3.5) where a slightly stronger initial set is appropriate. Every mix is matched on site to the wall in front of us: aggregate, colour, hydraulicity, joint profile.

The single most common reason owners of older Somerset cottages, farmhouses and churchyard walls call us is cement. From the 1960s onwards, hard Portland cement was used almost everywhere as a pointing mortar. On soft local sandstone, lias and rubble masonry it is a slow disaster — cement is harder than the stone, brittle, and effectively waterproof. Rain that ought to evaporate through a generous lime joint is instead funnelled into the body of the stone, where it freezes, expands, and lifts the face away year after year.

Our process is patient and almost always hand-tool only. We remove failed cement with quill picks and small chisels, never disc-cutters near historic fabric. We rake joints to a depth of at least twice their height, brush and damp down the wall, then point in lifts with a lime mortar matched to a surviving sample wherever one can be found. Joints are finished slightly recessed of the arris and beaten back when the mortar reaches its initial set, so the new work throws a shadow that reads true to the original.

For more on why cement is so damaging and what hot-mixed lime actually looks like in practice, read our journal posts on why cement pointing damages historic walls and hot-mixed vs NHL lime on Somerset cob.

What we offer in Taunton and across Somerset

• Hot-mixed lime mortars made on site to a matched specification
• Removal of cement pointing from listed and historic buildings
• Lime mortar joint profiling to match surviving original work
• Limewash and shelter-coat finishes for cob and soft stone
• Surveys and method statements for listed building consent applications

Where we work

Most of our pointing work is within an hour of Taunton — across the Quantocks, the Blackdown Hills, the Somerset Levels and out towards Wiveliscombe, Wellington, Bridgwater, Glastonbury and Yeovil. We also travel further into Devon, Wiltshire and Herefordshire for projects requiring our particular methods. See the full list on our areas we cover page.