For thousands of years, humans have used mortar to bind stones and bricks together to build durable, long-lasting structures. The strength of mortar is one of the primary reasons it’s been so useful for millennia, though its relative simplicity and affordability are also factors — after all, you only need water, sand, and easy-to-find materials like cement, chalk, or limestone to create it. However, its strength also makes it a bit of a burden when you want to remove mortar — don’t forget, the Big Bad Wolf had no problem when it came to blowing down straw and stick houses, but when it came to brick and mortar, he hit an impasse.

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However, the wolf could’ve had an easier time blowing a brick house down if he had the right tools for removing mortar. While you might think those tools could be anything that’s powerful enough to blast away at hardened rock, you’d be wrong — demolition may seem easier than the act of building, but when it comes to removing mortar, it involves more than just blindly hacking away. You’ll need to be more precise, especially if you’re trying to protect the integrity of materials around the mortar you’re removing. You’ll also want to make sure you’re equipped with the right safety gear — including eye protection, gloves, and a mask to deal with the dust.

Here are six recommendations for specific tools for removing mortar that are worth investing in if you don’t already have them in your tool kit. You can find further information on how these tools were selected at the end of this list.

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One of the most useful tools for removing mortar is an angle grinder, which these days is frequently available as a battery-powered tool. This makes it especially useful, as cordless tools are more versatile than ones that need to be connected to a wall outlet or other power source. A lightweight, handheld angle grinder can be great for quickly and efficiently removing mortar, whether it’s in your home or on a completely remote job site.

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Angle grinders can be used with a variety of different attachments, and for removing mortar, you’ll want to use a diamond wheel that’s specifically designed for concrete or masonry. Depending on the situation, you’ll likely want to hold the grinder at a 45-degree angle and move it along the joint to evenly remove mortar. As mentioned, angle grinders are not hard to find these days, so you have no shortage of options to choose from.

On SlashGear’s list of the best major cordless grinder brands, Bosch sits comfortably at the top. The Bosch 4.5-inch Ergonomic Angle Grinder with Paddle Switch (product code GWS10-450P) has a strong 4.6 out of 5 overall customer score based on over 140 Amazon user ratings.

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Amazon sells the Bosch 4.5-inch Ergonomic Angle Grinder with Paddle Switch for $89.

When you picture mortar removal, you may conjure up an image of a hammer and chisel, as that’s basically what you need to get rid of the material. However, in the 21st century, there are electric-powered rotary hammers that can automate the same concept with a lot less manual labor involved. With a motorized rotary hammer, you can position the bit at a shallow angle to the mortar joint and apply steady pressure to quickly and relatively effortlessly remove material. By moving along joints, you can remove mortar in sections fairly quickly and efficiently. 

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Like cordless drills and many other power tools, like angle grinders and recip saws, rotary hammers can be used with various accessories for specific applications. Just as you’d want to manually use a chisel with a hammer, you’ll want to attach chisel bits to your rotary hammer for removing mortar, and various types and sizes of bits are available depending on the specific job.

One downside to using a rotary hammer is that it can be a fairly pricey tool when compared to many of the other power tools in your kit. However, rotary hammers can be used for many more applications than just removing mortar, which can justify its higher cost. Makita makes a cordless rotary hammer,  that’s compatible with 18-volt batteries that can be used with many of its other tools that are well-reviewed on Amazon.

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The Makita 18V LXT Cordless 1-inch Rotary Hammer (product code XRH01Z) has a list price of $275 but is currently available for just $254.

If you’re looking for more precise mortar removal for particularly delicate tasks, you may want to opt for an oscillating multi-tool over something more powerful, like an angle grinder or rotary hammer. By setting a multi-tool to a medium setting and gently guiding its blade along mortar joints, you can remove mortar without risking too much removal at once — which is especially important if there are materials around the mortar you’re looking to prevent scratching or damaging.

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Many cordless oscillating tools come with a bundle of various accessories, which — in essence — is what makes it a “multi” tool. If you already own a multi-tool, you’ll want to make sure you have a grout removal blade attached to the device. Typically, grout is easier to remove than mortar, but that’s what makes the tool ideal for more precise jobs. Conversely, if you’ve got a lot of mortar to get through, you may want to use an axe rather than a scalpel — or, more accurately, an angle grinder or rotary hammer as opposed to a multi-tool.

In SlashGear’s comparison of DeWalt versus Ryobi’s Oscillating Multi-Tools, we noted that user reviews generally favor DeWalt’s — though both are solid options. DeWalt sells a variable-speed oscillating multi-tool for just over $100, which has a very impressive 4.8 out of 5 average customer score based on over 13,000 Amazon reviews. However, you can save even more money if you already own DeWalt cordless tools and are okay using a third-party brand. That’s because there are lesser-known brands that make tools compatible with DeWalt power sources. For example, Cerycose makes a Cordless Oscillating Tool that uses DeWalt batteries, as well as models that can use batteries from other brands, like Makita and Milwaukee.

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If you keep many different power tools in your garage, there’s a good chance you own a reciprocating saw in your kit. And, if you’re looking to remove mortar and don’t already have an angle grinder or rotary hammer on hand, a recip saw can come in quite handy. You might think that Sawzall is only useful for woodworking, but — with the right attachment — a reciprocating saw can be very useful for removing mortar. You’ll want to make sure the attachment fits the model saw you own and that it’s a masonry blade specifically designed for tougher work, such as cutting through mortar, such as a 12-inch tungsten carbide teeth-tipped brick-cutting demolition saw blade.

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To use a recip saw to remove mortar, you’ll want to position such a designated blade parallel to the mortar joint before using a slow, steady motion to make your cuts. Since a reciprocating saw can be fairly powerful and injudicious in its cuts, you’ll also want to handle it very carefully and be careful not to damage adjacent bricks or stones if you’re performing more precise removal.

In SlashGear’s list of the best cordless reciprocating saw brands, Milwaukee is #1 — after all, the company invented the Sawzall. However, DeWalt is a close second and is more affordable. Based on over 11,700 Amazon user ratings, the tool has an impressive 4.8 out of 5 overall customer score and will make a great addition to your tool collection, as it can perform many other functions besides mortar removal. It utilizes a variable-speed trigger and can deliver up to 3,000 strokes per minute, so you can use it to cut wood, plastic, drywall, and metal in addition to mortar and concrete.

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The DeWalt 20V Max Reciprocating Saw (product code DCS380B) retails for $159 on Amazon.

Humans have been removing mortar for nearly as long as they’ve been building with it, and it’s safe to say that Early Man wasn’t using power tools to get the job done. Instead, a good old-fashioned hammer and chisel were likely employed — and you can still do the same to remove mortar today. Sometimes, the simplest method proves to be the best, and with a good chisel, you can use a hammer or mallet to break away mortar without needing to buy any expensive equipment.

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Chisels come in different sizes, and if you’re expecting to remove mortar on various types of jobs, you may want to opt for a set of different-sized chisels, like the ValueMax 3-Piece Heavy Duty Cold Chisel Set. The Lestino Mason Chisel With Hand Guard is a 12-inch, alloy-steel chisel with a 1-inch blade. It weighs 1.5 pounds, has a shock-absorbent rubber handle, and is strong enough for demolishing masonry, brick, and concrete. Plus, it includes a hand guard to protect you from missed hits and overstrikes.

Of course, using a chisel is labor-intensive. Power tools are popular for a reason, and they’ll make removing mortar a lot easier — especially if there’s a lot to remove. But, if you’re working on smaller tasks, need more precise work, or are doing some last-minute fine-tuning after using a power tool to get the bulk of the mortar out, the right chisel won’t steer you wrong. You’ll likely even be able to use a hammer or mallet you’ve got lying around to pair with it, as long as it’s not a total piece of junk.

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Amazon sells the Lestino Mason Chisel With Hand Guard for $9.99 and the ValueMax 3-Piece Heavy Duty Cold Chisel Set for $8.99.

Just to be clear — you don’t want to use a wire brush and scraper for removing mortar — that would take a very, very long time. However, it’s still one of the most useful tools for removing mortar, as you’ll want them on hand after you’ve chiseled away at nearly all of the material using a grinder, rotary hammer, or other tool.

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After all, there is a good chance you plan to apply something new to the surface where the mortar just was, so you’ll want to ensure it’s as smooth as possible for optimal adhesion. A brush will help remove dust and fine particles left from the mortar removal process, including some that may be hiding in small imperfections in the surface. A scraper will help you remove particularly stubborn chunks that you didn’t fully remove on the first go-round.

It shouldn’t be too hard to find a good quality wire brush and scraper. You’ll want to look for something with a strong handle that won’t snap in two on you and a scraper made of metal or other tough material. The Warner 10-inch Wood Handle Wire Brush with Scraper is a very good option because it’s a good size, has a lot of bristles, and is a two-in-one tool that has the scraper on the end of the brush, which will streamline your work. Plus, it’s very affordable and has a strong 4.6 out of 5 overall customer score on Amazon, based on nearly 4,000 user reviews.

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The Warner 10-inch Wood Handle Wire Brush with Scraper is listed on Amazon for less than $7.

The tools included in this list were chosen not just for their effectiveness in removing mortar but also to provide a wider range of options better suited for different situations — including heavy-duty jobs, more precise removal, and after most of the mortar has been removed. This way, if you’re looking to remove mortar, at least one — if not several — of the tools included on this list will be useful to you no matter what type of job it is.

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For the specific recommended tools mentioned in this list, only products with strong customer reviews were considered, as user experience is a strong metric for measuring whether or not a tool is reliable and works as advertised — especially when it’s from lesser-known brands. The recommended tools in this list all have an average customer score of 4.2 out of 5 or higher, based on at least 140 user ratings — if not thousands or tens of thousands more. That’s important because a larger base of customers weighing in on a particular tool allows for a more accurate overall user score, as any fake reviews or outlier ratings made in bad faith (whether positively or negatively) won’t have nearly as much impact on the average score.

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