cleaning & sealing of exposed brick
We are planning to have one wall of exposed brick. Now the plaster is removed we have to clean the brick & seal it. Can you please recommend products for cleaning the brick (some sort of acid?) and also for sealing the brick afterwards? Thankyou.
We are planning to have one wall of exposed brick. Now the plaster is removed we have to clean the brick & seal it. Can you please recommend products for cleaning the brick (some sort of acid?) and also for sealing the brick afterwards? Thankyou.
Once the bulk of the plaster is off, the best thing I found was using a wire disk-brush on a drill to finish the brick. You have to be careful not to scratch the brick surface, but this was a lot faster than anything by hand and I didn’t have to use any acid. Keep in mind it does kick up a ton of dust though. To seal the wall I used Coronado Aquaplastic Urethane sealer. It is not oil based, so clean up is easy and I only had to do one coat. It comes in different finishes, and the clear dull is as matte as I have seen any brick wall.
I just did mine with diluted muriatic acid, a respirator and heavy rubber gloves… it works like magic. I finished them with a product from Edison Coatings http://www.edisoncoatings.com called System 90W. It seals it and totally disappears. I hate the shiny brick look.
Good luck and be careful.
I just cleaned my brick wall last weekend. I didn’t want to go down the acid route, though I’m sure it has the best results. I bought a bunch of those sponges with the scrubber pads (I found scrub brushes just threw a lot of water around) and used a bucket of warm water with some pine sol (not enough to have to rinse it). With some elbow grease, it didn’t strip everything but it made a big difference.
I just cleaned my brick wall last weekend. I didn’t want to go down the acid route, though I’m sure it has the best results. I bought a bunch of those sponges with the scrubber pads (I found scrub brushes just threw a lot of water around) and used warm water, some pine sol and some elbow grease – it doesn’t strip everything, but it made a big difference.
what ever you do leave the acid for the pros.
i actually have 3 unopened containers if you’d like them…bought them and never used ’em and now don’t know what to do with ’em (i think it’s called Vanatrol?) email me…i’m in carroll gardens.
shirleythecat@earthlink.net
I had the same issue and asked this same question about 8 months ago. Do a search on “brick” and it should come up. Warning: many people on this Board do not agree with removing plaster and exposing brick!
Muriatic acid watered down, will clean the bricks. Be very careful with the acid and wear protection on your hands & face. Once it’s dry you can use a clear oil poly.