Removing Paint From Brickwork ?

[WhiteVanJack]

Hi,

I would like to remove the paint from the exterior brickwork on a house and would be grateful for any feedback as to what the best method is to get it off.

The ground floor front elevation of the house was originally a traditional brick finish, however, over the years various owners have applied paint to the bricks. The neighbouring houses that have not been painted look much better without the paint and I would like to get the paint off and back to the original bricks.

My thoughts were that the best method would be some type of abrasive blasting such as sandblasting or with grit/beads which would hopefully remove the paint from the pitted surface of the bricks. Other than that, I thought that there may be some chemical solution but I am not convinced that chemicals would be as efficient as abrasive blasting.

The area of painted bricks is not that great, the ground floor elevation is approximately 25ft wide and approximately 9 ft high, however a large bay window, front door and two windows either side of the front door take up a lot of the space.

I would be grateful for any feedback and experience from forum members on my best options.


Regards
WhiteVanJack

 

[joe-90]

You aint got no chance.

 

[WhiteVanJack]

You aint got no chance.

And the reason why I aint got no chance is.......... ?

 

[r896neo]

Its very hard to get paint off bricks without badly damaging the bricks. The method with the best chance is probably grit or bead blasting but it is expensive and works out even more expensive if only a small area is being done. You will probably have to repoint afterwards too so the costs mounts up.

 

[WhiteVanJack]

Its very hard to get paint off bricks without badly damaging the bricks. The method with the best chance is probably grit or bead blasting but it is expensive and works out even more expensive if only a small area is being done. You will probably have to repoint afterwards too so the costs mounts up.

Its a question of balance, the cost of getting the paint off the bricks including repointing is small compared to the added value in terms of saleability of the property.

The house looks shabby compared to neighbouring houses of the same build that do not have the paint and impacts on any photos that would be used for a sale.

If it costs a couple of grand to get the paint off and the repointing then its better than having to drop ten large on the sale price because of the shabby kerb appeal of the house.


Regards
WhiteVanJack

 

[PrenticeBoyofDerry]

Have heard all sort of different approaches, but really does depend on the brick.
I have seen this never used it, maybe someone has.
http://www.stripperspaintremovers.com/basic_principles.htm

 

[andyb30]

Have heard all sort of different approaches, but really does depend on the brick.
I have seen this never used it, maybe someone has.
http://www.stripperspaintremovers.com/basic_principles.htm[/QUOTE]


good site,very useful. cheers for that link

 

[WhiteVanJack]

Have heard all sort of different approaches, but really does depend on the brick.
I have seen this never used it, maybe someone has.
http://www.stripperspaintremovers.com/basic_principles.htm[/QUOTE]

Thanks for the link, a very useful site with some interesting information.


Regards
WhiteVanJack

 

[PrenticeBoyofDerry]

Glad to be of assistance, chaps.