Ongoing exposure to water is usually the main reason you’ll find water damage to your masonry. Faulty rainwater systems are a common reason you’ll find your walls under continual attack from the elements. One of the most preventable problems homeowners will face, it still amazes me to this day with the number of water drainage systems left in disrepair.
However, if you do find that you have damaged bricks, here are some tips to help fix the problem if you’re feeling handy with a trowel.
Continued exposure to moisture in the cement between the bricks will cause it to soften, from the outside in, so the first thing to do is scour the cement out from between all the bricks, about 15mm deep, or until it start to solidify. Cement again, being careful not to damage your bricks.
The surface area should be cleaned once you have finished raking out the soft cement, and then with a clean pointed trowel you can start filling the joints. Always fill perpendicular or vertical joints first, then fill any bed or horizontal joints, and finally lightly stroke the repair over the affected area to blend in with the older brickwork.
When the brickwork itself is water damaged, the affected bricks should be carefully removed and replaced, taking care to match the existing brickwork. It is always worth noting at this stage that a brick that has gone bad on the often showing face may be fine on the remaining face. If it is carefully removed in one piece, it can be turned over to show the unaffected side. This will be the best match for your existing masonry. After removing the problematic bricks, the hole should be brushed to remove any loose sand and a new bed joint should be fitted making sure the joint is full.
The last joint of the replacement masonry is the most important. This is the joint that will sit directly under the existing brickwork and will need to be compacted with a piece of hardwood the same thickness as the joints. This is used to tamp the mortar into the back of the new joints. Care should be taken that replacement bricks sit in line with the existing face work to ensure continuity and a discreet repair.
When it comes to cracks in your walls, if you only have cracks following the tip of your masonry, it’s usually not that big of a job to repair, however, if your cracks continue through the bricks, then those bricks will need to be repaired. be replaced, since, as described, work is being done to discover and repair the root of the replacement where the horizontal crack has occurred, which is a simple grouting job.
It goes without saying that before attempting these repairs, you should first take care of any corrective work, also checking for possible future problems and addressing them accordingly.