Browse Forums DIY, Home Maintenance & Repair 1 Aug 13, 2016 7:38 pm Hi all, Brick and mortar expert needed! In the basement of our house we have this white stuff leaching out of the mortar. (Is it called "Efflorescence" ? ) Anyway, this happens to a minor degree around the bottom 3 bricks or so for parts of the downstairs bricked area. The house is on a sloping block and is dug half way in so that the front of the house is "double story" and the back of the houes is single story. This pic is of an area where it occurs the most. This is in the middle of the house on the lower level - where the ground level outside would be about 2/3 up the wall. So *knowing* that there's nothing separating the outside soil from touching the brick work externally, I assume that this is why the white stuff is happening. Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Is there any reason I can't seal the inside of the house to stop the white stuff? .. and having a quick look around at the sealers, which product or type of product would you recommend? Any comments appreciated. Cheers, HC Re: Interior brick sealing - the powdery white stuff 2Sep 19, 2016 4:17 pm Without more information I think what you're looking at is efflorescence - salt being drawn through your mortar and left to dry as moisture evaporates. If this is a new occurrence, but not a new wall, I would ask if something has changed recently? If it hasn't happened in the past there could be more moisture that usual sitting behind the wall, which could mean a leaking pipe or even just more rainfall than usual. If you can resolve the problem that's causing the moisture you'll most likely find the efflorescence stops as well. Though you will need to clean the existing salt from the bricks with an efflorescence cleaner. If this is the case then sealing the affected side of the bricks won't fix the problem. You could potentially seal the other side, but this won't solve the underlying problem. I hope this information helps. Hi, planning on using the attached stone pieces in my bathroom. I want to remove stains and gloss seal. Can I get some advice on best way to remove stains and best… 0 6709 DIY, Home Maintenance & Repair Hi everyone Question about Brevis gas heating undergound - was recently installed by previous owners (<1 year old) but live in a relatively large house - 4 bdr - and only… 0 1170 I am looking for someone who might have tackled a similar issue as me. I have a few rendered interior walls, the surface condition is hardly flat. I can see all the bumps… 0 7961 |