Brick walls are exposed to the elements all of the time, which makes brick patch services a requirement at some point along the way. Brick patch is done when there are missing or damaged bricks in a wall, which can occur for a number of reasons.
When You Might Need Brick Patch Work
The most common call that masonry professionals receive for brick patch work is when a hole has been drilled into brick. This may happen if you ever need to move wires in the walls of your home and drilling was required to access them. When left uncovered, these holes allow all manner of dirt, water and debris to infiltrate the wall. This can potentially lead to structural problems within the brick and even the wall itself.
That is why brick patch is so important when you have a hole in your brick wall. Additionally, visible holes will affect the overall appearance of the structure. Who wants to deal with that?
There are two approaches to brick patch work: repairing the brick with mortar and repairing it with a silicone caulk.
Repairing Brick with Mortar
Brick patching can be done with mortar. This is done by professional masons in a relatively simple and straightforward step-by-step fashion:
- The brick is cleaned to ensure a suitable surface. This helps to make sure that there is no dirt, debris or other grime that will impact the mortar as it’s applied.
- Using either brick dust or a concrete pigment, the mortar is mixed until it matches the pigment of the brick that’s being repaired.
- The hole is then filled with the pigmented mortar. Usually the hole will be filled just a little more than the hole is deep.
- A matching brick is pressed to the mortar that stands out from inside of the hole. This guarantees the newly patched brick will match its surroundings by imprinting the texture onto the remaining mortar mixture.
Repairing Brick with Caulk
A silicone caulk can be used in alternative to mortar. The process is very similar to the brick patching done using mortar.
- The brick is cleaned. First, it will be brushed with wire to ensure that nothing resides in the grooves and valleys of the brick’s texture.
- Compressed air is then blown into the hole to make double-sure that there is no remaining debris that will affect the caulk.
- The mason will use a silicone caulk that closely resembles the color of the existing brick. This caulk will fill the hole in the brick. Just like with mortar, the caulk will be filled just slightly above the surface of the brick.
- Brick dust is applied to a trowel and then pressed against the brick. This ensures the same color and texture of the existing brick so that it doesn’t stand out among the others in the wall.
Brick patch is an important step to take when you notice a hole or a chip in an exterior brick wall. Fortunately, brick patch is an easy task for an experienced mason.
