Repointing is a task done infrequently, perhaps once every 100 years.  But it is a necessary part of the preservation and maintenance of masonry buildings.  Doing it right the first time may cost a little more than doing it cheaply but the effort and the beauty will be appreciated for a century or more.

The Yearly Walk About. 

This is a family day, like spring cleaning or leaf day.  In a time when time itself was less precious, the entire family would spend the day inspecting and repairing roof shingles, whitewashing the field stone walls, removing saplings from near foundation walls, re-placing stones from the dry stack walls that surrounded the old house and so forth.  It was in this way that older homes have been preserved for centuries.  today, perhaps you call a roofer for the high pitched slate repairs and a historic restoration mason to repair a sagging lintel or some repointing concern... but much of the light labor can still be done is a day and in this way keep small problems from becoming big problems.

Preservation Brief 2 A resource from the US Department of the Interior that explains in general but articulate language the basic principles of restoration. We adhere to the principles of this article in our work.