How To Clean Bricks On Outside Of Fireplace

If you have a fireplace, you know how keen it is to be able to calorie-free a fire in your home on a cold nighttime. However, you as well know how dirty the bricks in your fireplace get from all the smoke and soot. Because they get so muddy, fireplace bricks should be cleaned at to the lowest degree once a twelvemonth. Luckily, the process of cleaning these bricks is relatively piece of cake, whether you're using traditional cleaning products or ordinary household items!

one

Vacuum the bricks with a soft castor attachment. Use the brush attachment on your vacuum and become over all of your bricks. Vacuum every bit much loose dust, debris, and soot as you tin so the bricks are easier to clean subsequently.
two
Scrub your fireplace with dishwashing detergent to remove low-cal stains. Combine ¹⁄₂ loving cup (120 mL) of dish detergent with 4 cups (950 mL) of h2o in a spray bottle and shake. Then, spray this solution onto your bricks and scrub them with your differently-sized scrub brushes. Rinse the bricks with warm h2o afterwards they're clean and dry them with a clean, dry cloth.^[1]
- Dish detergent is the easiest and quickest cleaning method for fireplace bricks, so information technology should be the get-go method you should endeavor if the bricks don't await too bad.
- Dishwashing detergent is relatively harmless, so this is also the best method to utilize on older bricks.
3
Go with borax to both make clean and disinfect fireplace bricks. Mix ii tablespoons (34 grams) of borax with 4 cups (950 mL) of hot h2o and 1 tablespoon (15 mL) of dish lather in a spray bottle. Shake the mixture together, and then spray it onto the bricks. Scrub the sprayed bricks with your brush in a round motion, then apply a clean, damp cloth to wipe away the grime after they're clean.^[2]
- Y'all can also make this cleaning solution in a bucket and utilize it to the bricks with a paintbrush or sponge if you don't have a spray bottle.
iv
Make clean newer, sturdier bricks with ammonia and detergent. Combine ^ane⁄₂ cup (120 mL) of ammonia, ¹⁄₄ cup (59 mL) of dishwashing detergent, and 4 cups (950 mL) of hot h2o in a spray bottle, swirling the bottle to mix the ingredients together. Spray this solution onto your bricks and scrub them with your scrub brush to make clean them. Once they're clean, wipe them off with a damp fabric to remove the cleaning solution.^[3]
- Ammonia can exist harmful on brickwork, so don't use this method on particularly sometime or fragile bricks.
- Exist certain to habiliment rubber gloves and safety goggles when working with ammonia.
5
Use trisodium phosphate (TSP) on the toughest stains and grease. Swirl together ^ane⁄₈ cup (30 mL) of TSP with i gallon (3.8 L) of hot water in a tall saucepan. Then, dip your brush into the cleaning solution and utilise it to scrub your bricks clean. Finally, rinse off the bricks with warm h2o.^[four]
- Only endeavor using TSP if dish soap and water doesn't work.
- TSP is a very potent cleaning solution, so make certain you don't handle information technology without wearing rubber gloves and safety goggles. Avoid getting the solution on your peel, your clothes, or the carpet.
- TSP can exist purchased at most home improvement stores and some grocery stores.

1
Use baking soda and soap for a convenient cleaning method. Combine about 2 to 3 tablespoons (30 to 44 mL) of dish lather with ½ cup (5 ounces) of baking soda to make a cleaning paste. Then, dip your scrub brush into the paste and use it to scrub the bricks using small, circular motions. Let the paste sit on the bricks for near 5 minutes, then rinse it off with warm water.^[v]
- Piece of work from the bottom upwards when scrubbing the bricks, to avoid leaving streaks.
2
Spray your bricks with vinegar and water if they aren't too old. Mix equal parts of vinegar and warm h2o in a spray bottle and spray the bricks with this solution. Spray the bricks again after a few minutes, and then scrub them in a circular motion with a scrub castor. Rinse the bricks with warm water in one case you're washed.^[6]
- Because the acidity of vinegar makes it a tad annoying, yous may not want to use this method on bricks that are more than than xx years erstwhile.
- To avert streaking, work from the bottom of the fireplace up when scrubbing the bricks.
- You may want to employ a mixture of baking soda and water to the bricks subsequently y'all're done, to cancel out the acidity of the vinegar you lot just sprayed on them. However, this isn't strictly necessary.
3
Make a paste out of foam of tartar and use that to clean your bricks. To brand your paste, combine two tablespoons (20 grams) of cream of tartar with a minor amount of water. Then, use an quondam toothbrush to utilise a layer of the sparse paste to a sooty area of brick and let information technology sit down for five-x minutes. Finally, rinse the paste off with warm water.^[7]
- Unless y'all have a lot of cream of tartar on hand, this method is best used for spot cleaning relatively pocket-size areas of soot.
4
Try bathroom cleaner or oven cleaner if that's all you accept. People have sometimes had success cleaning fireplace bricks with bathroom cleaning spray or oven cleaner. Spray the cleaner onto your bricks and allow it sit for 20-xxx minutes. And then, scrub the bricks with your brush and utilize a sponge dipped in water to wipe off any residue left over.^[8]
- Using bathroom cleaner or oven cleaner isn't an effective method for cleaning bricks 100% of the time, so you should only consider using them if you take no other fashion to make clean your fireplace bricks.
- Y'all can acquire bathroom cleaning spray and oven cleaner at whatsoever grocery store that sells home cleaning supplies.

Add New Question

Question

How do I clean the brick on a fireplace that runs to the ceiling?

Michelle Driscoll is the Owner of Mulberry Maids based in northern Colorado. Driscoll received her Masters in Public Health from the Colorado School of Public Health in 2016.

Founder, Mulberry Maids

Expert Answer

You lot will need to scrub the brick with a scrub brush and a dish lather solution. To reach the high ceiling, you volition almost likely need to use a loftier ladder. Start cleaning college up on the brick wall as possible and work your way down. Utilize cautionary mensurate while working on the ladder. If you practise not feel safe cleaning on the ladder, you may want to call a professional.
Question

How do I remove paint and plaster stains from the fireplace brick?

Michelle Driscoll is the Owner of Mulberry Maids based in northern Colorado. Driscoll received her Masters in Public Health from the Colorado School of Public Health in 2016.

Founder, Mulberry Maids

Expert Answer

Apply pigment stripper using a trowel to the paint stains and leave it for several hours and scrape abroad as much as possible. Yous may besides want to scrub the bricks with apparently water to remove any remaining paint and to remove the chemicals from the brick. For the plaster stains, you tin can first scrape abroad as much of the plaster as possible. For any leftover rest, yous can employ a hydrochloric acid solution with a wire brush to clean the brick.
Question

Tin can the bricks on the inside of the chimney be painted?

Yes, bricks can be painted, even ones effectually and inside the chimney. Just make sure the bricks are make clean before applying the first base coat.
Question

How exercise you clean former fireplace bricks?

Drew Hawkins1

Community Answer

Avoid using ammonia or an acidic cleaner such equally vinegar on old bricks because it tin can cause them to break down. Make a simple cleaning solution that's condom to employ on older bricks by combining nearly 2 to three tablespoons (thirty to 44 mL) of dish soap with ½ cup (v ounces) of baking soda to make a cleaning paste. Dip a scrub brush into the paste and clean the bricks using small, circular motions. Let the paste to sit on the bricks for v minutes, then rinse it off with clean h2o.
Question

Does vinegar harm brick?

Drew Hawkins1

Community Respond

Vinegar is a not bad solution you can use to clean newer, sturdier bricks. However, the acerbity of the vinegar, which makes it a great abrasive for cleaning, is harmful to bricks that are more than 20 years old. If you plan to use vinegar to clean your bricks, make sure they're younger than 20 years old.
Question

How exercise you clean soot off fireplace bricks?

Drew Hawkins1

Community Reply

Soot is hands removed from fireplace bricks using a simple cleaning solution. Combine i⁄2 cup (120 mL) of dish detergent with iv cups (950 mL) of water in a spray bottle and milk shake information technology up well to mix it. Spray the solution onto the bricks and utilize a scrub castor to clean off the soot. Rinse the bricks with warm water afterwards they're clean and dry out them off with a clean cloth.

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Exist sure to wear rubber gloves and safety goggles when using cleaning chemicals to make clean your fireplace.
Earlier using any chemical solutions to clean all of your fireplace bricks, try them out first on a small spot in your fireplace that isn't well visible. Some chemicals may bleach or stain and information technology's best to know which ones will impact your fireplace before using them.
Diluted muriatic acid is sometimes suggested as a good way to clean fireplace bricks without having to scrub them. However, there are a lot of prophylactic precautions you take to take when using the acid, so it's better to go out this cleaning method to the professionals.

Things Yous'll Need

Dishwashing detergent
Table salt
Bucket
Potent Bristled Brush
Warm H2o
Borax
Ammonia
Trisodium Phosphate
Condom Gloves
Vinegar
Cream of tartar
Baking soda
Bathroom cleaner or oven cleaner

About this article

Article Summary X

To make clean fireplace bricks, beginning by mixing baking soda and dish soap and rubbing the paste into the bricks with a scrub castor. Then, let the paste sit for v minutes before rinsing it off with warm water. You tin can likewise clean fireplace bricks by spraying them with equal parts h2o and white vinegar. Afterwards you spray the bricks, scrub them with a scrub brush and rinse them off with warm h2o. To learn how to use commercial cleaning products to clean fireplace bricks, read on!

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