bunsen_h

The oafish minions who reshingled my roof last autumn replaced the flashing around the chimney. To do so, they pulled out the old flashing which was embedded in the mortar between the chimney bricks, and applied new flashing which is "surface-mounted", i.e. held in place with caulking. The new flashing covers a smaller area than the old. This left old and slightly-crumbly mortar, with cracks and gaps, exposed.

I could have hired someone to repoint the mortar. My previous experience with getting someone to do masonry repair was not positive (as with most of the repair work I've paid people to do around here). And considering my lack of employment, I decided that I could deal with it myself, save my money, and probably do as good a job. My previous work with concrete and mortar went pretty well, though that was at ground level rather than way up high. I have leftover concrete and mortar mix from that project.

I am not an acrophile. I'm not acrophobic, either, but I don't enjoy being up tall ladders, crawling around on roofs, etc. But I can do it when I have to. I started by climbing up carefully and tying a rope to the chimney, to provide support and safety for later when I'd be bringing up tools and materials.

Of note:

An electric drill with a masonry bit can be used to remove old mortar, in place of the traditional hammer and chisel. It's probably more appropriate for small jobs like what I was doing, but it's a one-handed tool which doesn't require whacking away at brickwork while one is on a surface with less-than-ideal footing.
A garden hose with a spray nozzle can be used in place of the traditional spray bottle to wash out bits of old mortar and to dampen brick surfaces, and doesn't need to be refilled. Hauling it up the roof is a bit tricky. Water running down the roof surface will make it more slippery, especially if the water is runoff from fresh mortar, which is alkaline.
Even when one has the proper tools (thanks, ragnhildr !) and even though fresh mortar is somewhat caustic, it's sometimes faster and easier to take a handful of mortar and slap/rub it into place, then rinse off the surface, than to carefully work the mortar into the gaps and cracks it needs to be in. Skin in contact with fresh mortar should be washed off with plenty of fresh water ASAP, of course, per the usual protocols for handling caustics. Brief soaking in vinegar can also be used to help neutralize the caustic, but lots of fresh water should do the job.
The oafish minions also didn't caulk the flashing properly; there are some gaps. I'll need to back up there in a few days, after the mortar has set, to finish the job. I left the rope tied to the chimney.