How to Prevent Spalling Bricks

If you have bricks anywhere around your home or yard, then you have probably experienced spalling bricks. Spalling is when a brick starts to break away and deteriorate due to water seeping in the pores and expanding during a freeze. This guide will teach you how to get the most life out of your bricks and prevent spalling.

How to Prevent Spalling Bricks – Repair

Unfortunately, it is almost impossibly hard to repair a brick that has succumbed to spalling. Bricks that have spalled have to be removed and replaced. A tedious and extremely unconventional task that can take hours for just one brick. If this fact doesn’t make you want to prevent spalling bricks, I don’t know what will!

How to Prevent Spalling Bricks – Sealant

One of the most common ways to prevent the spalling of bricks is to coat the bricks with a sealant. This is an easy and inexpensive way to prevent spalling bricks. Note that this will do nothing to save a spalled brick, but will keep the moisture out and will definitely prevent spalling bricks. Don’t apply too much though, as the bricks do need to breath, and if you apply too much sealant, it will prevent this.

How to Prevent Spalling Bricks – Divertion

Another great way to prevent spalling bricks is to simply keep the bricks from getting wet! This sounds simple because it is. Anywhere that you have bricks that can potentially be rained on, you should construct some kind of an overhang with drainage leading far away from the bricks. Bricks really need to stay dry to prevent spalling, so anywhere water may be pouring onto bricks, a drainage pipe or something similar should be used to prevent this at all costs!

How to Prevent Spalling Bricks – Massive Spalling

If spalling is happening in just a few isolated places, then it’s not a huge deal and it won’t cause any real damage to your home. However, if you have failed to prevent spalling bricks, and large sections of a wall or chimney are beginning to spall, then you should definitely hire a mason as soon as possible to fix this. The life of your wall or chimney depends on it, and spalling bricks are always dangerous and susceptible to cave-ins.

There you have it! Follow these simple steps and you shall never have to worry about spalling ever again! Repairing spalled bricks is an expensive and time consuming procedure, so you should take the utmost care in keeping your bricks safe and dry! Good luck!