Painting Brick Masonry

Painting Brick Masonry

When Painting Brick Masonry it is wise not to cut corners with workmanship assuming you can cover it up with paint. Make sure you fill the joints up tight with mortar to keep moisture out of the wall. Any moisture trapped behind the paint will cause problems later, such as paint peeling off the wall.

Water or moisture can enter masonry wall through incompletely bonded or partially filled mortar joints, coping, sill, projections or pop outs, or incomplete caulking and improperly installed or ommited flashing.

Before Painting Brick Masonry

Make sure there are no efflorescent materials in the mortar or brick. Efflorescence beneath the paint film can cause problems.

Each coat of paint is the foundation for the next coat, so your success or failure with painting will depend a lot on how well you prepare each surface. The first thing to do is thoroughly examine the entire surface to be painted. Previously painted surfaces often require the greatest effort. Remove all loose matter. Take special care to clean any surface that you will be covering with emulsion paint or primer, they require a cleaner surface than solvent based paints. Be sure to follow the manufacturer's directions about applying any paint to damp surfaces.

Preparing New Masonry

Usually you wouldn't paint new clay masonry. But if need be don't wash clay masonry walls with any acid cleaning solution. Acid reactions can make paint fail. Use alkali-resistant paints. Unless low-alkali portland cement was used in the mortar, neutralize the wall to reduce the possibility of alkali-caused failure with a zinc chloride or zinc sulfate solution of 2 to 3-1/2 pounds per gallon of water.

Preparing Existing Masonry

Examine older unpainted masonry for efflorescence, mildew, mold, and moss. Check for any possible entry points for water. If necessary repair any flashing and caulking and tuck point any defective mortar joints. Remove all efflorescent by scrubbing with clear water and a stiff brush.

If moss has accumulated on a damp shaded wall, wet the wall first with clear water and then apply weed killer. Chemical weed killers may add to efflorescence or reach unfavorably with paint. After you get rid of the moss, be sure to scrub the wall with a stiff brush and rinse with clear water to remove the weed killer.

Remove any mildew completely before applying any paint. It will continue to grow and damage new paint if you do not do this. You can steam clean or sandblast to get rid of mildew also.

This mixture works well too:

* 3 Ounces trisodium phosphate (Soilax, Spic and Span, Etc.)

* 1 Ounce laundry detergent (Tide, All, Etc.)

* 1 Quart 5 percent sodium hyperchloride (Clorox, Purex, Etc.)

* 3 Quarts warm Water, enough to make 1 gallon solution.

Using this solution, scrub with a medium soft brush until the surface is clean then rinse thoroughly. For small areas, use an ordinary household cleanser, Scrub with a medium soft brush and rinse. Use a mildew proof paint to keep molds from coming back.

Remove all peeled, cracked, flaked or blistered paint by sandblasting, scraping, or wire brushing. Blistering paint is usually due to moisture within the masonry unit. Find and stop the water from entering the masonry. If too many coats of paint have already been installed, remove them all to get the best look. Sandblasting is the faster way to remove large areas of paint.

Completely remove cement based paints before Painting Brick Masonry with other types. An exception to this rule is when you have used cement based paint as a primer and you will be doing the next coat with another paint within a couple of days. If you are going to repaint the wall with another cement based paint, just wire brush and scrub if you don't have any mildew, efflorescence, or any other problems of that nature when Painting Brick Masonry.

Selecting Masonry Paints

In selecting paint for Painting Brick Masonry walls, you greatest concern should be the characteristics of the surface and the exposure conditions of the wall. Choosing a good primer is important, especially where unusual or severe conditions exist. It's best to use an alkaline resistant primer.

Masonry paint should be durable, easy to apply, and should stick well. All paints have distinct properties, and the surfaces you put them on can very a lot when dealing with the many aspects of the masonry wall. Even the most experienced paint contractors have to examine a surface carefully before deciding which paint to use. Typically for exterior masonry, you will want to use a porous paint so any moisture in a wall wont be trapped behind the paint and cause it to blister etc.

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