Removing Mortar from Brickwork

Jaykay7

Hello

I recently re pointed my rear wall however I made a bit of a mess with the mortar & did'nt wash down the bricks before it set. Any ideas on how to remove it?

Thanks

NOVASTAR

Hi Jaykay7! I'm glad you asked this question as I have the same problem .... and the mortar is very dark grey!!
Lets hope someone can come up with a miracle suggestion for us both!

maninthestreet

Lightly (and I do mean lightly) tap the mortar with a hammer. It should crumble away.

bubblegumcola

Some sort of acid wash over the mortar, I'm not sure how it works. The brickwork on my neighbours conservatory firewall was terrible, mortar everywhere including my patio doors. The contractors made a vague attempt to tidy it up and did a small area with the acid wash to try and tidy up the pointing.

Looks horrible and I have to look at the damn wall. I'm sure some builder will know the proper stuff to use and post.

Kiran

2 options come to mind

1) pressure washer, this will depend on the type of bricks. Don't use them on porus or face bricks

2) brick acid is the other option, but BE VERY CAREFUL, read the instructions and wear all relevant PPE ie thick rubber gauntlets, eye protection etc. This is what is done in the construction industry but it is VOLATILE and must be used properly.

HTH

ormus

assuming the mortar is the usual weak 8-1 mix, then a gentle hammer/chisel and a final wire brushing will shift it.
try a wire brush attachment on an electric drill?
for stronger stuff you may need the correct acid treatment.

Jaykay7

Hey Nova

Yeah I would agree with you regards a grey colour. There is'nt actually any mortar on the bricks, it's more of a grey mark. Seems like acid is more the answer, but not sure I want to get into messing around with that!!

Thanks for all of your replies.

27col

When we built our house we used a product called Disclean. It is a strong acidic product, so care needs to be taken when applying it. It seemed to work quite well especially on new mortar. Look here http://www.fhltd.co.uk/page10.htm