DianeJM Posted March 17, 2011 Share Posted March 17, 2011 Our house has a partial brick front. We will be painting the house in a month or two. I'm thinking about painting that brick, but I'm not sure if it's a good idea. Have any of you ever painted brick on your house? Were you still glad you did it after a few years had gone by? Do you have to prime the bricks in some way before painting? Does the paint stay on? Does the color of painted brick match the color of painted wood (assuming you used the same paint brand and color to paint both, lol)? I appreciate sharing any experiences you have had with this, as I know nothing about it. Thanks!!!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harriet Vane Posted March 17, 2011 Share Posted March 17, 2011 If I could, I would not paint brick. The bottom of my house is brick, as is the low wall along the stairs to the porch. Over time the paint bubbles and peels, and it's got to be repainted. In order to repaint, it's got to be thoroughly scraped, which is a royal pain. If you do choose to paint your brick, yes, you MUST prime with a high-quality masonry primer. Do not skimp on this. Be prepared to scrape and repaint every couple years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DianeJM Posted March 18, 2011 Author Share Posted March 18, 2011 Oh, hey, Strider, long time no talk. Thanks for the heads up, that is the kind of info I was looking for. Argh, scraping is not on my list of fun things to do. I'm more into low or no maintenance these days; sounds like we should leave the brick naked. It's fairly decent brick, not tacky, thankfully, so it should be fine. Okay, THANKS!!! All the best to you! Blessings, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan in KY Posted March 18, 2011 Share Posted March 18, 2011 After seeing what some of the old houses around these parts go through with paint-on-brick, I would never do it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DianeJM Posted March 18, 2011 Author Share Posted March 18, 2011 It's settled, we are leaving them as is. Thanks for the reply, Susan. Blessings, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dobela Posted March 18, 2011 Share Posted March 18, 2011 I hate the color of our brick and several people know it. All of the contractor construction type people have suggested I paint the brick and all say it will last as long as paint on the house. That doesn't reassure me considering that my parents house sits in the sun and has to be painted every 5-10 years, not the 20 that I hear others talking about. Personally even though I don't like my brick, I plan on leaving it alone. I don't need extra work or expense. Kind of like let a baby stay asleep, KWIM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katemary63 Posted March 18, 2011 Share Posted March 18, 2011 We're painting our brick house. My DH worked for a company for 20 years that was entirely painted brick. It was beautiful and the paint job was not any more difficult to maintain then any other painted home. You do need to prime. You do need to repaint every 5-7 years just like any other painted surface exposed to the weather. But if you do your maintenance, no scraping will be needed. Our home is a very old style tan brick. It is dated and there is no way to update the look other then painting. I can't wait! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted March 18, 2011 Share Posted March 18, 2011 If done correctly it looks good. My dh is a contractor and painted one of our previous homes. It had been red brick and he painted it a medium gray. We were never sorry, it changed the mood of the house. We've driven by a few times and it's still the same color. A good cleaning with a power washer and a good primer are necessary. I would get tips from a paint store, not just the hardware store. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardening momma Posted March 18, 2011 Share Posted March 18, 2011 There is a little brick house a couple of miles away from us. I don't remember what the natural brick color was, but it has been painted. I think it's gorgeous. It's about this color, and has white trim and black shutters (I think--I just remember there are white and black accents). It looks sooo sharp! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardening momma Posted March 18, 2011 Share Posted March 18, 2011 If I could, I would not paint brick. The bottom of my house is brick, as is the low wall along the stairs to the porch. Over time the paint bubbles and peels, and it's got to be repainted. In order to repaint, it's got to be thoroughly scraped, which is a royal pain. If you do choose to paint your brick, yes, you MUST prime with a high-quality masonry primer. Do not skimp on this. Be prepared to scrape and repaint every couple years. I would think power washing would take it off without scraping. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweetpeach Posted March 18, 2011 Share Posted March 18, 2011 I've wondered about painting our exterior bricks as well. Another idea I had was exterior tiles? Or, doing a cement finish over the bricks -- like a staccato finish. (? not sure if that's the correct term). Anyone have any experience with either of these applications? T Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DianeJM Posted March 20, 2011 Author Share Posted March 20, 2011 [boy this board moves fast.] Thanks, ladies, for the info. Very interesting! Hmmmm... will have to think. But I guess we are erring on the side of leaving it as is, even though it would be GREAT to get a totally different look. Well, maybe some day. I appreciate everything you said, thanks! Blessings, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teachin'Mine Posted March 20, 2011 Share Posted March 20, 2011 Just to add another thought, instead of primer and paint, I'd use stain. This site has some links which might help to explain: http://www.ehow.com/brick-stain/ Good luck with whatever you decide. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DianeJM Posted March 20, 2011 Author Share Posted March 20, 2011 Just to add another thought' date=' instead of primer and paint, I'd use stain. This site has some links which might help to explain:http://www.ehow.com/brick-stain/ Good luck with whatever you decide. :)[/quote'] Wow! Never heard of this. Great website. Thanks!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephanieZ Posted March 21, 2011 Share Posted March 21, 2011 I used this stuff http://www.brick-anew.com/ to paint a hideous red brick with white mortar fireplace that dominated our family room. It looks truly fantastic and was very easy to do. It's pretty much a decorative paint process with 3-4 steps. It's been 3 years and it still looks absolutely perfect. I brag on it all the time, and noone ever had guessed it was painted. I haven't tried it outside, but if faced with a similarly ugly brick exterior, I'd be very tempted to try it based on the success inside. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.