Exterior Brick Slurry/painting

jwaldman97

I am going to bid on a job for 14 homes to paint. The contractor wants the brick slurried and painted.

I've never applied slurry to brick. Have no clue on what to use, but it seems like something the mason contractor should do.

Any ideas...input would be greatly appreciated.

Tscarborough

Couldn't you just integral color the slurry and be done wth it?

jwaldman97

Possibly.

Could you be so kind as to tell me what to mix to make this slurry? I did a google search and came up with a mixture of mud and cow dung. LOL!

I've never done this before so I'm completley in the dark. But it does seem rather labor intensive.

Tscarborough

It would bepend upon several things, but in general, you could assume the slurry would consist of portland cement, sand and a bonding agent, along with the color. Again, it could vary, going so far as to be just a lime/sand/brick dust slurry.

tkle

Sounds like a water wash,usually done when the brick is freshly laid.Instead of cutting the joints they're washed in with a damp spomge.We usually do it with slump block which are very irregular,giving you a lumpy looking wall.I've also done it with stone.Brick I think would be too smooth to give the desired effect.The slurry would end up looking like smooth stucco.
Use a damp sponge any water running down the wall will show.I like to brush it when near dry to remove the loose sand and smooth it out a bit.Never tried it with colored mud.I think the sponging might tend to make the color uneven.Painting also helps seal the wall from water stains.A colored undercoat is nice though in case the paint is scratched.A shade lighter than your paint color makes it easier to see when you paint.

Tscarborough

It does make the color uneven, which is a desirable trait for the look. I wiil see if I can find a pic.

tkle

Yeah,I'd like to see it.Might be a way to fix up my laundry room.It has 4" block walls with a lot of patching.Something I could play with,possibly dusting a few different colors into it...

Tscarborough

I can't find a picture. It is easy enough to slurry over block, though, and even if it comes out looking like crap it will still look better than raw CMU. Go for it.

747

Disagree i think he is going to F it up. LOL. But i wish him the best of luck. It just sounds to me like this is a see one do one experience and he has not seen one done before first hand.

Tscar you got to admit i have a point.

Tscarborough

It is pretty hard to screw up a slurry, but I have done so before, so you do have a point.

tkle

In my case it's my laundry room.What's to mess up?Besides the painter can always fix it.