The Golden State: Where & How to Live, Secure, Visit, Enjoy and Thrive in California

First Aid For The Ailing Houses

All surface salts or crusts should be removed with a wire brush or by an acid wash (see section on Efflorescence).

Concrete can be painted with a mixture of portland cement and water of the consistency of cream. At the time of application the surface should be soaked with water; as soon as the cement sets it should be sprinkled and kept damp for several days for the cement to cure.

Paints intended for concrete and masonry can be obtained as powder to be mixed with water. They come in many colors, and also combined with a waterproofer. Being without oil, they are not affected by lime. When mixed thick, they can be textured. This cement-base paint should not be applied over an oil-painted surface. The old oil paint must first be removed.

When house paint is used, this should be of good quality. The first coat should be a mixture of one-third paint, one-third good spar varnish, and one-third turpentine. This should be thoroughly brushed in and spread in a thin and continuous coat. The second coat is paint thinned with 1 pint of turpentine to the gallon. The finish coat is paint as it comes in can.

There are a number of new masonry paints on the market. One of the most popular is based on a synthetic-rubber formula that gives excellent weather resistance and nonfading qualities. This paint is a water-emulsion type, and may be applied with either brush, spray, or roller. Spraying with a heavy-duty gun gives an excellent result, for it fills the pores of the masonry and prevents water penetration by driven rain or snow.

Another type of exterior masonry paint is based on an epoxy-resin formula. This type of paint, such as Metaseal Epoxy, actually puts a plastic coating over the masonry surface, and it bonds itself firmly to the clean dry concrete. An epoxy resin is a true plastic, not one of the so-called "plastic" paints. It is supplied in two containers which are mixed be fore painting. The resulting plastic coating sets at temperatures above 50 degrees. Epoxys are often used as adhesives, which accounts for the extreme adhesion to the masonry surface.

Paint applied with a brush must be thoroughly worked into the surface. Spraying will usually be more thorough because the paint will be forced into the pores and roughnesses. Special masonry paint rollers are sold by most paint dealers. These rollers have a very thick pile covering that picks up a great deal of paint at one time. The action of the roller squeezes a puddle of the paint ahead of it, and this puddle seeps into all of the cracks and pores in the masonry. The method is suggested especially for rough and porous surfaces where brushing does not give a satisfactory job.