NIOSH reports that grinding or cutting old mortar during tuckpointing can generate airborne dust containing crystalline silica, with worker exposures measured up to 100 times the NIOSH REL when controls are absent or ineffective.
Source: CDC/NIOSH: Engineering Controls — Reducing Worker Exposure to Hazardous Dust During Tuckpointing ↗Dust entry
Tuckpointing dust
Dust generated when deteriorated mortar is ground or cut from between bricks during tuckpointing and masonry repointing.
Airborne form
dust
The form describes what is suspended in air at the point of exposure. A material can produce more than one form, such as dust during handling and fume during heating.
Health effects
silicosislung cancerkidney diseasereduced lung functionairway disease
Evidence
Controls
- local exhaust ventilation
- wet methods
- tool shrouds
- HEPA-filtered vacuuming
- exposure monitoring
- appropriate respiratory protection