Archive for the ‘ Masonry Restoration ’ Category

It’s important when cleaning masonry that you take the time to do it right, otherwise, you might end up permanently altering it’s appearance for the worse, or damaging your masonry. To help, Del Prete Masonry’s written a helpful guide of Do’s and Don’ts to remind you how to properly clean masonry.

Do Use Masonry Cleaners from Masonry Specialty Companies

Masonry companies will sell the proper chemical mixture compositions for cleaning masonry. These chemicals have been specially formulated to be effective over a large area, and produce uniform results over the masonry surface. More importantly, by getting the cleaner from a masonry specialty company, like Del Prete Masonry, you get the know how on how to apply the chemicals, not some guess work from a big box retail sales person who’s training was fifteen minutes watching a computer video.

Don’t use Muriatic Acid or Sandblasting

A mistake that is sometimes made by people who don’t know any better is to use the same methods to clean their Brick masonry as they would concrete, or stone. Muriatic acid or sandblasting can both etch and damage the brick and mortar, or irreversibly change its appearance.

Do Tests Before You Clean

Before you start cleaning your entire wall, it’s best to start by testing the cleaning product, on different stains on different brick colors and in different places. Because the cleaning chemicals and stains can be highly individual, what might work for one stain on one color of brick might not work on a different stain or with a different color of brick.

Don’t Test in a Conspicuous Place

It’s good that you’re testing, but you should also make sure your test is in as inconspicuous an area as possible. You should also make sure you rinse the test and give it time to dry, before deciding whether it’s good or not.

Do Prewet Surfaces and Apply With Low Pressure Spray

Applying clean water to the masonry before you apply the chemicals is a must for the chemical to soak into the brick and stains. When applying the chemicals starting at the top and moving down the wall with a low pressure spray, make sure you wet in advance of the spray.

Don’t Apply with High Pressure or Without Prewetting

High pressure sprayers will push the cleaner too deeply into the block where it cannot be rinsed out. If it cannot be rinsed out, it will result in masonry staining.

Finally, Do make sure you Rinse Thoroughly

It is essentially when rinsing that you wash off all of the cleaning chemicals. This means the chemicals that have soaked into the brick as well, for this purpose you should use a high power pressure washer. If it’s interior work, use an abundance of clean water, a sponge, or a toothbrush to finish off your cleaning.

Have Anymore Masonry Cleaning or Restoration Questions?

For other questions regarding masonry cleaning or restoration, feel free to contact Delprete Mansonry. Our masonry restoration professionals have the experience and history of satisfied clients to prove that we’ll get the job done right, and cost-effectively. To get started with your masonry restoration project, please contact our office today at 410-683-0650 or email us at mike@delpretemasonry.com. We serve Baltimore City, County, Harford County, Carroll County, Anne Arundel County, and Howard County. Keep up with our blog for masonry related information, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.