HELP - Brick Spray Marks

[doule]

i am a homeowner desperate for information. i had a "handyman" pressure wash my house - assuming he knew what he was doing. my house is brick front and the rest siding. i never dreamed he would wash the brick. apparently he had the wand too close because there are back and forth "lines" where he sprayed, curlicues, etc. these are darker than the normal brick. how can i make all the brick the same color again?

 

[RogerG]

Where in Virginia are you? We will be traveling through Va this weekend - if your in the route, we may be able to take a look. If you are seeing "designs", someone used the wrong tip and pressure and may have caused some pretty serious damage. Hard to really say without seeing what type of brick and how the damage looks.

Celeste

 

[doule]

i am in salem (near roanoke). my exhusband's masonry friend said there was nothing we could do, maybe try rubbing it with a stone?? the brick face is not flat though.

 

[RogerG]

From what you described, your guy pretty much engraved the face of the brick. Brick is far more delicate than folks think and he more than likely used a zero degree tip and literally cut into the face of the brick itself. I hate that you've had this experience! Your ex-husband's friend is definitely qualified (since he was a mason) to make the call since he's seen it up close. When we remove mortar smears, we will use broken brick pieces to rub the brick faces if necessary. Using the brick piece doesn't cause discoloration - doing this may just blend the cuts a bit but I seriously doubt it will change dramatically.

You could try a legal route but there is a possibility that the guy didn't have insurance and even if he did, what he did was essentially vandalism through stupidity to your home and most GL policies don't cover applicator ignorance.

Celeste

 

[TheHoodGuy]

You learned a valuable lesson of you get what you pay for. I'm sorry for your damage. These are the clowns we are trying to put out of business. I'd recommend a product called Sil-O-Wet but without seeing the brick, it could actually make the damage more pronounced.

 

[RogerG]

Hey, what's Sil-O-Wet?

Doule - we're coming up Hwy 29 through Roanoke on Friday - if you want to give us a call, there may be a possibility of blending the curliques (this is a scary thought) but again - can't make any determination without seeing what you have.

Celeste

 

[TheHoodGuy]

Hey, what's Sil-O-Wet?


Celeste

It's a blend of polymers and hardeners that richens the color of brick and seals it. Will turn most brick 4-6 shades deeper depending upon dilution. You downstream it onto the house.

 

[RogerG]

Okay - did a search...among other non-industry things, I found it as an ink and as a vinyl siding product. Can't find where to get it for brick use. Can you email me a link? Sounds like an interesting sealant product....maybe good for some restoration work?

Thanks in advance

Celeste

P.S. Doule, in the event that your brick is badly defaced, you may have to explore the option of sealing the brick to prevent premature deteriation of the brick. If you have severe cuts and cavities that are not supposed to be there, they will catch and hold water which over time will erode the brick further.

 

[TheHoodGuy]

Celeste the board must have some type of block that won't let me post the link. E-spec sells it.

 

[RogerG]

I found that when I was searching....that would be the vinyl reference I made. Maybe I need to look further into that. Thanks

 

[doule]

yes, you do get what you pay for. i could throw up. i certainly appreciate all your comments and advice. i sure hope you can fix it!

celeste, i will be leaving friday evening around 6:00 to go camping. if you are coming through earlier, i would be glad to meet you at home, unless you would want to swing by and look at it anyway.
my cell is 540-580-6071 - suzanne hamilton
address: 4836 Celtic Circle
Salem
exit 137 (wildwood road exit) off of Interstate 81. go to stop light (shoneys) and turn right onto main street (old route 11 or 460). go through 3 stop lights and turn right at the true value hardware store (butt hollow road). go under the interstate bridge and turn left into The Highlands subdivision (great glen road). go to stop sign and turn left (celtic circle). we are in straight in front of the cul-de-sac.

 

[BrianD]

Do you have pictures of this condition? I just fixed a house like that. It wasn't easy, but I did it under consultation of a brick mason. Basically, I used my X-Jet to apply enough pressure to blend in the streaks, but not enough to damage the brick surface. Because I had to cover every inch of the surface, it took a while and was tedious work, but the outcome was great. It did darken the surface a shade, but did not significantly change the overall look of the house.

 

[doule]

no, i don't have pictures. the front of the house actually isn't real noticable. the walls on each side of the front door are the "worst". i had thought about your suggestion myself and i feel it would probably work. i will ask my brick mason if he can do this. i would probably have to rent a pressure washer for him, unless he has one.

i'll let you know what he says - it will take a little while, he is hard to reach.

 

[BrianD]

This is a tricky thing to do and make look right. You may want to spend a few bucks and hire a pressure washing contractor to do it instead of your mason. A pressure washer would be more adept with using the water pressure to fix your problem, but they will probably want you to sign a waiver of liability before they do the job.

I just got a call from a home builder who wants me to come out and fix the wand marks caused from another contractor. If you are careful, you can blend them in and make the surface look great. Again, take your time and test in out of the way areas with different pressures. With the house I already fixed and the house I will be fixing this weekend, I was fortunate enough to get on site before the landscaping phase, so I could test in an area that would eventually be covered by dirt.

Good luck!

 

[doule]

thank you again, brian. i'll look in the phone book for pressure washers and talk to a few.

 

[RogerG]

Doule,

Make sure when you find one, they are insured....ask if they have experience with brick and get references! What Brian has suggested was the route we were thinking of....it will take some finesse.

Good Luck!

Celeste

 

[jeffex11]

How deep are the curlie Qs and marks ? If their superficial they can be repaired by re-washing with an even stroke to remove an EVEN amount of material. It sounds like he just waved the nozel ove the brick to rinse it rather than evenly like you are spray painting the brick for an even clean. If its deep gouges from a ) degree nozzel then It may be more difficult.

 

[doule]

i would judge that they are superficial, not deep. noticeable, however, when standing up close. it is not noticeable from the street.

 

[jeffex11]

the even stroke of the power washer should clean up the marks try a spot as a test first