Hello All,
Below is a picture of brick on a 2000 square foot house in Central Texas and I was wondering if the discoloring and cracking on the brick was anything peculiar. I am planning on hitting it with a 4% softwash that should restore its typical color if that is even possible. Does anyone have any experience with brick that looks like this and is there anything I need to do differently for it?
Thank you
Bleach doesn’t restore color. 4% is a strong mix.
@Historic would probably know how to tackle that one. He knows his stuff when it comes to cleaning brick.
I figured a strong mix would be needed for brick this discolored. Would bleach even touch the yellow and gray buildup on the brick?
Thank you for the input, I look forward to his reply
No problem. If you click on his name in my post it will bring up his profile and you can look through some of his threads while you wait. He may have already answered exactly what you are looking for. And, if not, you’ll definitely learn something.
SH is used to remove organic stains (mold, algae…). I think an acid would be what you’re looking for. I have limited experience with this but researching Eacochem’s products would be a good start i think.
I have been summoned…lol.
So, the brick are actually supposed to look that way. It looks like 2 different variations that they tried to randomize throughout the building process. It is a pretty common thing to see.
The only staining I see is the efflorescence (white, chalky). Use a mild (4-6 parts water : 1 part muriatic acid), and it will clean right up. Brush it on and scrub, let dwell 10ish minutes, runse off.
Upsell sealing the brick. Look for a siloxane water based sealer. Don’t get any on the windows or if you do, clean immediately.
Also, the cracking is only on the face/finish. It is not within the brick themselves. When making brick, they’ll sometimes apply a finish that when fired, acts like a glaze in pottery. Same thing here. The glaze/finish was meant to crack like that for ‘aesthetics’.
Thank you very much, I will give that shot and let yall know how it goes. The differing color seemed stylistic but the discoloration was worrying me.
Always nice to have your input on these things. I thought the cracking may have been from a glazing but I don’t clean enough brick to really know what I’m talking about so best to leave it up to the experts.
Man you just gave me the golden ticket to the chocolate factory. Thank you sir and thank you @Historic for the knowledge you share.
You start digging through old threads and you’ll find some really good stuff.
Suggest you visit a local brickyard. That doesn’t even look that dirty as Historic said. All brick and mortar absorb dirt some just from smog etc. Most the time a strong HW will clean them up pretty good, but if you’re ambitious hit it with about a 1.5-2% mix, but in all honesty, doubt you’ll see much difference over a strong hw.
This has been my experience with brick. The brick around me just doesn’t seem to grow much of anything. Sometimes a really neglected area in the shade and on the north side will get pretty grungy but that’s about it.
@Joe01 4% is HOT and highly unlikely to be needed on that house if all fours side look the same as you have pictured. Just remember that bleach kills the green and black stuff:
I will certainly visit a brickyard to get my bearings. I will hit it with a heavy HW first, then use muriatic acid for the efflorescence Historic mentioned if needed.
Charge accordingly if using acid as this is no longer just cleaning.
