Tuckpointing is often confused with repointing; the simplest way to explain is that tuck pointing is a type of repointing. Although bricks themselves can last for over 100 years, the mortar joints that keep the bricks in place have a much shorter lifespan. Therefore, those mortar joints need to be replaced or repaired time and again.
Replacing these mortar joints is essentially repointing. Tuck pointing, however, is repointing “with flair” – using a colour for the mortar joints that is the same as the brick or stone, and using a contrasting colour for the mortar, which is applied into a thin line.