Ive had builders doing my driveway and they've left quite large splashes of cement on the brick wall in garden
Question:Theyve been back to clean it but they just spread the cement more over the red bricks. Does anyone know how to remove dried cement on a red brick wall and what chemicals/methods to use?
Answers:
A wire brush will not get the concrete off and will actually mark the bricks even more
you need to use brick cleaner/acid which you can purchase from most builders merchants to remove the cement from the concrete
before you start the area of the wall need to be saturated with water so the acid does not penetrate into the brickwork as this could cause additional staining
make sure your wearing rubber gloves, eye protection and old clothes, read the instruction on the container and have a bucket of clean water or a hose pipe at the side of you in case you do get any acid on your skin or worse still in your eyes, believe me it burns, I have had splashes in my eyes too
pour the acid into a plastic bucket or any plastic container and apply to the top of the area required using a paint brush, you will see the reaction straight away as the acid get to work and will fizz or foam up as the cement is dissolved, you can keep adding more acid to the same area until this foaming action stops
the reason for starting at the top is so any surplus acid will run down the face of the wall, keep brushing it back to the top to get the maximum penetration
you can chip at the surface carefully to remove some of the partially dissolved concrete using a 2" bolster in you hand but don't use a hammer as you may chip the bricks
repeat the same process until all the concrete has been removed
Its also advisable to use a power washer to remove the acid from the brickwork rather than using just a hosepipe
one word of warning though, if I am right in thinking this mess has been caused by your drive having been paterned concreted then the acid will also effect your new drive
hope this helps
Thanks
Mick
http://www.192directory.co.uk
Try go lighty in a not so noticeable area w/ a wire brush.Should of been cleaned up when it was poured.
Try using a wire brush
sugar soap and a steel wire brush and a lot of elbow grease good luck
well my method is messy ! pennding on your bricks !
one you can with a wire brush ! two with acid ! even very strong paint remover this will eat your cement away ! and scrub away wash away ! well this is my method !
there is another way !! but much more money !its pro sanding
the firm comes round and blasts your wall with very fine sand
you will see no trace !! its not given !!
Get some brick cleaner from a builders merchant.
Apply it neat with a paintbrush. The cement will start to fizz as the acid dissolves it. Wash it off with plenty of clean water. Make sure you wear eye protection and gloves
There is an environmentally friendly product if you want to be green, however it is dearer.
Straight forward go and buy brick acid. Its cheap and readily available and does the job no messing about.
Hi,builders are a night mare.Like you i have had them leave mess after mess which has ended up costing me a fortune to get put right.I would contact the company tell them I want the cement removed & if they do not do it I will go to the local paper.They will not want bad press so with luck they will get the job done how it should have been done the first time around.The more we let them get away with it the worse they treat us.Good Luck
try a wire brush, could take a long while to get rid of it.
You need to use acid to clean it off. Scrape off what you can first of all then apply the acid, let it dissolve the mortar then wash off with plenty of water. You can get the acid at builders merchants or at tile shops ( bottles of "cement away")
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