Removing cement render from soft red bricks

[tumbledown]

I have been trying to remove the internal cement render from the brick plinth below the soleplate. In some places this has come away really easily. In others, it is proving very tricky. I'm trying not to damage the bricks, as they are very soft and crumbly. does anyone have any tips, other than just taking your time and chipping away carefully? Are there and chemicals or solutions that would help without causing too much damage to the brickwork?

 

[middi]

Hi

There isn't a secret formula to remove cement from soft red bricks.

If you are too gentle with it you can actually create more damage, the best thing you can do is give it a nice sharp wack with a nice sharp bolster and mallet and hope that the face of the brick does not cone away with the cement. If it does just carefully remove the old brick and replace it.

That's cement used for a very incorrect application for you.

Never mind and happy wacking

 

[tumbledown]

Thanks Middi, 'tis as I feared - just a painstaking job! I intent to re-render the brickwork using lime plaster, so I guess that a little damage to the brick face is better than leaving some of the cement behind under the new lime render?

 

[NT]

I guess that a little damage to the brick face is better than leaving some of the cement behind under the new lime render?

Is it? I'd be more inclined to remove what comes off ok but not push it with anything stuck hard. My latest hypothesis is that cutting through the render where the mortar joins are underneath would significantly reduce the chance of it damaging the bricks in future, it enables lime to be put into the joins, it doesnt do the bricks any damage, and its less work to boot. Since I havent been doing this for 30 years I've no way to know for sure what the long term outcome is, but its what I expect would be the best or one of the best options.

Bear in mind any soft bricks you damage the face of are liable to disintegrate over the years ahead. If subject to wet freezing, they will.


NT

 

[tumbledown]

Hmm, I hadn't thought of it like that. Mind you, most of them are in a pretty bad way - guess its due to being encased for the last 30 odd years.

 

[NT]

Well, removing some of the render would provide lots of evaporation surface.


NT