Masonry Paint Removed - Damaged Bricks Dilema

[machineage]

Hi all!

Well I finally got around to removing the masonry paint on my bungalow which was built in 1980 (I really dislike painted brickwork!).

Anyway - it has indeed exposed the probable reason the bricks were painted in the first place. I thought it was due to the large 'spots' left by the cavity wall insulation drilling which was installed before my time here - however it seems the bricks have in fact spalled in places - mostly around the edges.

Upon closer inspection of the painted wall - I can indeed see many bricks which have similar damage.

I'm in a real dilemma now as to what to do

Any thoughts / ideas?

Here's the wall I just stripped of paint

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• machineage
• 16 Jul 2014
• 2

Here's a close-up of the typical damage

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• machineage
• 16 Jul 2014
• 2

A couple of pictures of one wall yet to be stripped - with damage lying beneath the paint

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• machineage
• 16 Jul 2014
• 2

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• machineage
• 16 Jul 2014
• 2

 

[Bosswhite]

The edges of the bricks are chipped, not a lot can be done leave them to weather and the edges will darken down.

The other alternative is to paint the brickwork !

 

[honda]

Looks 100% better than it did painted despite the chips. I'd just leave it and forget it.

 

[machineage]

Hmmm - I'm pretty unhappy with how it looks

The chimney is built from the same bricks - and two of them have the faces completely blown off. Considering the bungalow is only 34 years old - I suspect these are just crap quality bricks. My worry is that now I am stripping the paint off - they will continue to deteriorate

It wouldn't look so bad if the bricks were multi facing bricks which would disguise the chips. Them being a solid colour makes it all the more obvious.

They actually cover just one elevation of the house - the other elevations being incorporated into what was an existing building dating from the '20s. Those are traditional multi bricks which look much more appealing.

I am seriously considering having the outer leaf replaced to match the older walls - save for the fact the bricks are of differing sizes and the upheaval / expense...

 

[sparkwright]

There's coloured cement, but will probably make it look worse.

You could consider replacing some of the bricks, have seen some excellent results in matching up the pointing.

However, get the colour and the style of the pointing wrong and it will look terrible.

Likewise you would have to get a good match of brick.

Got to admit you've done a nice job of cleaning up those bricks. Somehow an older property doesn't need to 100% perfect when it comes to this sort of thing.

Make sure you get a very good builder, otherwise it's a waste of time.

 

[machineage]

I am actually extending the bungalow and moving a few things around (bricking up a window - creating a new door opening etc).

My first job was to be rid of the paint - which has thrown up this dilemma.

Here is the 9 metre stretch of painted wall. There is another 1 metre painted stretch not picture here (the one I have been stripping). In the widest section of this wall a new door is to be inserted.

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• machineage
• 18 Jul 2014
• 2

Here is what the other walls look like for the original older structure - and form the remaining three elevations - quite a contrast!

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• machineage
• 18 Jul 2014
• 2

So I am pondering the situation if I retain the bricks: stripping the paint (there's no way it's staying!) leaving me with chipped / spalled / poor quality facing bricks - having to find matching bricks for the extension / to replace the very badly damaged bricks (including those which have been damaged by the cavity wall insulation drilling) - matching the pointing - the possibility of continued deterioration of the bricks once stripped of paint.

Or - I replace the entire outer leaf with bricks more closely matched to those of the older structure / remaining three elevations. It would save me having to strip the paint from this wall - and the new door could be inserted during the process.

I am wondering what the cost would be to replace the outer leaf - and how difficult a job it would be. The outer leaf is non-load-bearing save for supporting the windows (the trussed roof is supported on the inner leaf). Maybe a question for the building section of the forum?!

 

[sparkwright]

The newer bricks are clearly nothing like the older ones, so I agree it's a poor match and would possibly annoy me, especially if you see the two designs together.

In a way, having the new ones painted does provide a nice contrast in that it possibly looks like it's meant to be like that. It doesn't clash.

One thought is rendering the newer bricks, again it might look like it's meant to be like that.

Often you see places half in bricks, half in render.

Or pebble-dash.

However, it sounds like you really want matching bricks, so it may be best to just go for that.

Make sure you take the time to find a very good match. Don't forget reclaimation yards can have this kind of stuff.

 

[Bosswhite]

You will be very unlikely to get exact matching bricks, it all depends on when the bricks were fired,and how long they have been exposed to the elements, etc ( as with any other product)
As you say the property is more than 30 years old, so the bricks could be imperial measurements .
If you dont like the bricks the way they are now, either render or paint them or redo all the walls completely. It all depends on how much you want to spend

 

[machineage]

This is a dilemma I am still yet to resolve...

Could anyone give me an idea of the cost comparison for two scenarios:

1) Replace the 1980s metric brick outer leaf of the painted elevation shown above which incorporates three windows & will have a new door opening fitted. The bricks would be as close a match as possible to the older unpainted imperial multi-bricks shown above which form the remaining elevations. Also build the new extension with newly acquired matching bricks for the outer leaf (block inner leaf).

2) Leave the outer painted leaf in situ and apply render board and finish with modern acrylic / polymer coloured render. Build new extension with block outer leaf & finish with the same render system.

Just down the road from me a house has been renovated and new garden walls erected. The garden walls were built from concrete block to which I thought 'they're never just gonna paint that are they?!' Anyway over a couple of days the guys fixed panels to the walls & front elevation of the house - and finished it by troweling on some form of roughcast finish which appeared to be in powdered form?

Anyway the end result looks good - and I thought - 'maybe that's the answer to my dilemma'... I would prefer a brick finish and do away with these awful quality / poorly matched bricks - but I fear the cost and improbability of finding a suitable metric match are against me.