Brick Home Maintenance

Brick is considered one of the most durable materials you can use to construct your dream home. In fact, it has been a traditional building material found in most historic homes all over the world. A lot of homeowners love to use such material because aside from its durability, it’s beautiful and can help increase the resale value of properties.

But, like other building materials, regular and proper maintenance of bricks is necessary especially if you have plans to sell your home. If well maintained, brick homes can actually last a century or more. Below are some tips to remember on how you can preserve and maintain your brick homes.

Inspect your bricks periodically. Checking regularly your brick home allows you to determine any problems especially during the first stage. During inspection, keep in mind that most of the damage you may possibly find is not in the brick itself but in its mortar, either it’s crumbling or there’s a presence of moss or mildew. To remove such growth, you can use a mixture of bleach and water, and scrub it using a stiff brush.

Clean your brick exteriors regularly. Brick exteriors require only very little cleaning with the use only of a garden hose to spray the brick walls and a brush to scrub the area. If water and brush aren’t enough to get the job done, you can also use a commercial cleaning agent but be sure you read the directions to avoid damaging your bricks.

Check for growth of vines or other plants. Although plant growths look pretty on your home’s exteriors, they’re actually causing damage to your bricks. These plants adhere to the brick, which eventually causes erosion. When removing vines, always cut the one nearest the soil then allow them to die rather than pulling them off.

Assess for any signs of efflorescence. Efflorescence is a gradual growth of salt crystals from the brick that migrate to the surface whenever water enters it. You easily see this in the form of chalky deposits on the brick’s surface. This can be cleaned using a stiff brush and a chemical cleaning agent.

Ensure that your weep holes are clean. Weep holes were originally built to allow moisture from the brick walls to drain to the outside. Make sure you check and clean them regularly as clogging can cause water damage.

Repair immediately once you find any damages. When you find that either the bricks or mortar are damaged, crumbling or missing, be sure to repair the area right away before it causes further damage. If you know how to repair the brick and/or mortar damage, you may do so with the use of the right equipment and supplies. If not, you can ask the help of professionals to get the job done properly for you.