Steps
- Choose the type of stain or dirt you are dealing with. Mold, mildew, or algae require different methods and chemicals than do rust stains or cement and mortar smears.
- Clean your brick with a solution of chlorine bleach if you have mildew or mold problems.
- Mix chlorine bleach with water in a large bucket, using equal proportions.
- Pour the solution into a pump type garden sprayer, and pump it up.
- Wet a section of wall (or patio, if cleaning pavers) with a water hose.
- Spray the bleach solution on the surface, beginning at the top, on a wall, soaking it thoroughly.
- Allow the bleach solution to react with the stains for a few minutes, but do not leave it long enough for it to begin to dry.
- Rinse a small section of wall to see if the solution is having the desired effect.
- For serious stains, scrub the wall with pure bleach, using an acid brush on a broom-type handle.
- Rinse the wall thoroughly with water. Be careful not to let the bleach solution dry on the wall before rinsing.
- Use an acid solution to clean mortar stains, rust from irrigation well water, or soil that a bleach solution doesn't clean to your satisfaction.
- Buy muratic acid or an acid based masonary detergent like Shurclean, available at home improvement stores, hardware stores, or building supply centers.
- Fill a plastic buck 2/3 full of clean water. Add acid at a proportion of about 1 part acid to 3 parts water, but do not fill the bucket too full, as you will not want this solution to splash out accidentally.
- Wet the wall or other surface with a garden hose.
- Brush the diluted acid solution on the wall, scrubbing as you apply it with an acid brush.
- After applying and scrubbing with the acid solution, allow the acid to work for 10 to 15 minutes, being careful not to let the wall dry out.
- After giving the solution time to work, rinse thoroughly with copious amounts of water.
- Rent a pressure washer for very stubborn soil or stains, being careful not to "etch" the masonary joints or brick when using this method.
- Rinse all surfaces exposed to either of the above mentioned cleaning solutions, using plenty of water to dilute them to prevent damage to surfaces or plants.
- Consider sealing the brick to prevent future staining or soiling. Use a siloxane or silicone sealant, applied following the manufacturer's directions.
Tips
- Wear old clothing, rubber gloves, and goggles when applying the cleaning solutions mentioned above.
- Work when there is minimal wind to prevent spray from going where you do not want it to.
- Work on shaded areas, or shaded sides of the project when possible.
Warnings
- Avoid contact with skin when using even dilute solutions of acid or bleach.
- Never mix acid and bleach when cleaning.
- Do not breath concentrated vapors from these cleaning solutions.
Things You'll Need
- Acid brushes with handles.
- Rubber gloves.
- Muratic acid or Shurclean.
- Chlorine bleach.
- A garden hose.
- Optional: pressure washer.
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