Hello,
I have a friend who has just spent a small fortune improving his backyard.
One of those projects included having a new patio installed by laying new man-made ‘bricks’, if you will. He has inadvertently spotted this new patio by dripping a water-proofing solution similar to that used on decking. He was spraying his new bamboo fence with this product. His wife is ready to kill him if he does not get these spots off. They are dark and look like grease spots.
I do believe that he has tried paint thinner and this did not work. I have suggested pumice stone or very gentle sand blasting. Neither have been tried yet as he has been out of town. I don’t think that these will work because, IMHO, these are not surface stains. I believe that the solution has penetrated into the brick material. I will take some photos and post them later today.
Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.
Regards,
Phillip
Replies
Phillip, you need to know what the finish was that got on the brick. There are some that are next to impossible to remove. If it was spilled on something like unsealed concrete pavers, it may have gone pretty deep. This company specializes in masonry cleaners, get all the necessary info and contact them.
http://www.chargar.com/ad.htm
Beat it to fit / Paint it to match
hammer1,Thanks for your suggestions.I just came back from their home but no one was home (or awake yet). So, I don't know yet exactly what it was that he was using. I'm headed back to take some photos and I'll post them in a few minutes.I feel badly for them because I believe that this stuff really penetrated these bricks and may not come off easily or at all. I hope I'm wrong.Thanks for the link and your help.Phillip
They look like concrete pavers. You can't flip them over because there is a good and bad face. Some of the effected blocks are cut and replacements would have to be re-cut. With the tight, compacted fit, replacing could have an impact on a much larger area. I hope your friend has figured out what drop cloths are used for! Accidents like those should be addressed immediately, while the product is still wet. Clean up instructions are normally on the can. At this point, you may have to use a paint remover, followed by washing. As someone else mentioned, in time, the spots may wash off.We often seal porous pavers due to natural degradation and frost conditions. Application of some sealers may help to mask the spots but I wouldn't count on it. Many sealers don't show. Having an answer to a problem most of us know enough to avoid isn't easy. Stripping and scrubbing is only a guess but it's the first option I'd try.Beat it to fit / Paint it to match
Can he just pop the affected bricks and replace them? Might be the easiest way out of this instead of futzing with cleaners.
Glen
AzDiscDog,Yes, these 'bricks' can be replaced, but the cost will be prohibitive as many are custom cut. I really believe that this may be only option if they want to get the affected bricks back to their original state. But that's not for me to say.Thanks for your suggestion and time.Phillip
I see why the chemical route is more attractive at this point. Nothing like sweat equity to really make you feel like you own the project.Here's another suggestion after viewing the photos and seeing how extensive the drips were.What about a sealer on the bricks to darken them? The wife would have to sign off on having the darker color, but it might just mask the existing drops. This should go without saying, but try sealing a spare brick first to see what the results are. The bamboo looked to have a pretty light colored stain / sealer applied to them so the overall color change to the bricks shouldn't be too bad.On the bright side, if the bricks do have to be replaced then having that whole outer ring affected will make it easier to fix the inner bricks. ;-) Probably not the silver lining the HO's were looking for....Glen
Here are two images of Jan's patio. I will get the name of the solution he used as soon as I can.
Phillip
Flip them over.
Gently pressure wash, maybe use some type of cleaner. I would not seal the bricks as this needs to be done yearly. I would bet that just like a sealer these spots will be just about gone within 2 years from the sun.
Can the bricks be flipped over? Can you manage to keep the wife from seeing the damage for about two years? (The stuff will fade naturally in a year or two.)
Need to be careful re chemicals used on them -- strong acids should be avoided.
Read the label on the sealer to get an idea what sort of solvent is used in it. Generally will be petroleum, alcohol, or something along the lines of acetone. Be careful with petroleum solvents especially to not use any containing non-volatile oils, as they will just make the stain darker.
Try mixing small amounts of solvent (one of the above) with corn starch to make a paste (consistency of mashed potatoes, maybe) and applying that to just the spots themselves. Work in well, leave a 1/4" thickness of the stuff, then allow to dry and brush off the residue.
The same can be attempted with various paint removers, but do the "inconspicuous place" test first, as some paint removers may stain further or cause surface etching.
If all else fails, plant a tree that drops nasty little oily seeds.
DanH,Some of the bricks probably could be flipped over, but some are cut to a unique shape and this would not work. Also, getting them back in to look exactly as they were may not be too easy. I have no experience with this, but someone skilled at this may not have a problem with it.As to Jan's wife, she wants these spots to be gone yesterday. Trust me on this, so keeping her from seeing these spots for two years is probably completely out of the question unless she goes blind and that's not likely to happen any time soon. He may experience some trauma if he doesn't come up with a fix for his handy work. Grin.I appreciate all of your great suggestions and will pass them on. I have been over there 4 times this morning and still no one answers the door. I'll try again later. I'm really curious to know what he used. I do know for sure that it was some sort of UV protector to keep the bamboo from turning gray. But the brand I am not sure of at all.Thanks again.
<I have been over there 4 times this morning and still no one answers the door.>
I guess she done kilt 'im?
Forrest
That has occurred to me. Ha.I just had a chat with him and will not post my latest info.
Ok, I finally got my hands on the solution that he used. It is Olympic Water Guard.Suggested cleanup is paint thinner or mineral spirits. All of us have already figured this out. The label mentioned that it contained linseed oil which is not too tough to remove IMO, but it's the other ingredients that are the problem. I'm no chemist, but the UV protector is probably an acrylic of some sort.Anyway, I will pass on to Jan all of the great advice that we received here. And, I will post the results as soon as they are available.Regards,
Phillip
Unfortunately Olympic has several different products with that name. The MSDS lists the following (partial) contents for one type:Linseed oil
Naphtha
Paraffin waxes and hydrocarbon waxes
Methylethyl ketoximeI'm guessing it's the waxes that are the problem. They produce a dark stain and will be hard to get out. Probably an MEK class solvent in a poultice would be your best bet.
So convenient a thing it is to be a reasonable Creature, since it enables one to find or make a Reason for everything one has a mind to do. --Benjamin Franklin
DanH,Great advice. Your post made me think of Coleman fuel as a solent. Years ago when I was employed at an oil refinery in Northern New Mexico, I brewed my own Coleman fuel after a few preliminary tests and it worked very well. I found out later that it also made a good solvent for removing greasy spots.Another thought just hit me: we used to use plain old Crisco shortenig to remove pine pitch from our hands. This just dissolved it away. I was amazed by this. Perhaps this may work??Lots to think about here. We could mix it with flour or cornstarch as you suggested.Thanks again.
First of all contact Olympic and see what they suggest.http://www.olympic.com/contact_us.htmAnd I found this."Q: I just applied Olympic Stain to my deck and I accidentally sprayed some onto my vinyl siding. How can I get it off?
A: We have found that linseed-oil based product can be removed from vinyl siding by using Pine-Sol or Simple Green (pine-oil containing cleaners). Leave on for approximately 10 minutes and scrub with a stiff bristle brush. If the product has dried for several days, it may not come off."And they make deck strippers.http://www.olympic.com/stain_cleaners.htmAnd follow withe a power washer..
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A-holes. Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
That's certainly worth trying. Another idea (slightly dangerous) that I had was to cover the brick with a thin layer of sand (1/16 inch or so), squirt lighter fluid (Zippo type) on the spots, let soak 30 second, give another squirt, and then light it. The sand would serve as insulation to avoid shocking the brick too much.Obviously, try this on a scrap first, as there is a danger of causing either cracking of the brick or surface spalling. And don't attempt it unless the brick has dried for 2-3 days since the last application of water.
So convenient a thing it is to be a reasonable Creature, since it enables one to find or make a Reason for everything one has a mind to do. --Benjamin Franklin
Phillip
Just lift out the offending brick and turn it over!
frenchy,That would work for some but not all due to the unique shape of some of the pieces. That would work on some, but not all. Thanks for your suggestion though.
If you can get away with just turning over the brick, do it. (I believe I saw a tool somewhere that's supposed to make brick removal easier.) The fewer bricks you have to doctor the better.Also, see if there are any left-over bricks that can be subbed for some of them.You don't have to use a single strategy.
So convenient a thing it is to be a reasonable Creature, since it enables one to find or make a Reason for everything one has a mind to do. --Benjamin Franklin
Phil,
This ain't rocket science. Stop trying to make it so. Flip the frickin' brick! Recutting another and replacing it is at 6th grade education level. You can do it. Your wife can do it. Those are common patio bricks. If you're afraid of getting your nails dirty, wear a pair of those Atlas nitrile coated garden gloves.
However, wear safety glasses.
Putting a coat of sealer all over the whole patio is not a bad idea, either. It'd make this issue go away.
Try burning a spot off with a torch.
MarkH,Thanks for your suggestion. I think it would be worth a try myself. Tomorrow we will be trying many of the suggestions mentioned here.
Looking at the picture, I only see one cut brick that can't be flipped and swapped with its, also flipped, matching brick.SamT
Sam,The photo was only a very small section of the patio. The photo probably only representd 1/15th of the entire patio. Jan did a good job of making sure his spots were well distributed on his new patio. Grin.We'll see how it goes to day trying all that was suggested in this thread.
By the way, since your buddy doesn't know what drop cloths are for, does he know that one should be extra careful with anything containing linseed oil? Any cloth or paper saturated with it is liable to spontaneously combust. Can really ruin your day.
Dan,Trust me, his wife has told him about more than just drop clothes in the last few days. I feel for him, but he screwed up big time by not covering up the patio when he sprayed their new bamboo fence. Can't say why he did what he did. Regardless, he's paying for his carelessness.
Yeah, it probably didn't occur to him that "clear" sealer isn't colorless when splashed on other surfaces.
So convenient a thing it is to be a reasonable Creature, since it enables one to find or make a Reason for everything one has a mind to do. --Benjamin Franklin