Looking at your brick house and imagining it in a fresh new color can be exciting. Maybe you love the idea of classic white painted brick, or perhaps you’re drawn to something bolder like gray or a rich, deep tone.
Painting brick transforms the entire look of a home, taking it from traditional to contemporary, or simply refreshing tired exterior brick that’s seen better days.
Before you add “paint brick house” to your weekend to do list, there’s quite a bit you need to know. Brick behaves differently than wood siding or aluminum siding.
The material breathes, absorbs moisture, and requires specific preparation and products to ensure your painted surface lasts for years rather than peeling away after the first winter.
Why Paint a Brick House?
Brick homes have a timeless appeal, but sometimes the color feels dated or simply doesn’t match your vision.
Painting exterior brick gives you complete control over your home’s appearance. A brick fireplace inside might look charming in natural red tones, but that same color on your entire house exterior might feel too rustic or dark for your taste.
Some brick develops staining over time. White residue from efflorescence, dark streaks from moisture, or simply decades of weathering can leave unpainted brick looking worn.
Paint covers these imperfections beautifully while protecting the masonry surfaces underneath.
There’s also the practical side. Older brick and mortar can become porous, allowing moisture to penetrate more easily. The right paint system can help seal brick and provide an extra layer of protection against the elements, though you need to do this carefully to avoid trapping moisture inside the walls.
Understanding What You’re Working With
Brick is porous and breathable. These qualities help the material manage moisture naturally, allowing water vapor to escape rather than becoming trapped inside your walls. When you paint brick, you’re adding a layer that changes how the material breathes.
This is why choosing proper paint matters so much. Regular exterior paint designed for wood or other materials can create problems on masonry surfaces. You need products specifically formulated for brick that allow vapor transmission while still providing protection and color.
New construction brick needs time to cure fully before painting. If your brick home is less than a year old, wait.
The mortar needs to dry completely, and any residual moisture or salts need to work their way out of the material. Painting too soon can trap these elements and cause peeling or discoloration later.
Brick that’s already been painted is easier to repaint, assuming the existing painted brick is in good condition.
You’re working with a surface that’s already sealed, so the main concerns become proper cleaning and ensuring the old paint is adhering well.
Preparing Your Brick for Paint
Preparation determines how well your paint job performs over time. Skip steps here and you’ll likely see paint peel within a few years, leaving you with a maintenance nightmare that’s worse than what you started with.
Start by inspecting the entire house carefully. Look for cracked mortar, loose bricks, or areas where water might be penetrating. These problems need fixing before any paint touches the surface. Damaged mortar should be repaired, and any structural concerns addressed. Paint can’t fix underlying issues with your brick walls.
Cleaning the Surface
Brick collects dirt, mildew, and grime over decades of exposure to weather. Power washing is the standard method for cleaning exterior brick before painting. Use a pressure washer with appropriate settings, typically around 1,500 to 2,000 PSI. Too much pressure can damage mortar or the brick surface itself.
Focus your cleaning efforts on:
- Areas under the roof overhang where dirt accumulates without rain washing it away
- Around windows and the door where hand prints and grime build up over time
- Near the ground where splashback from the driveway or porch causes staining
- North-facing walls that tend to develop more mildew due to limited sun exposure
After power washing, let the brick dry completely. This isn’t a quick process. Depending on weather conditions and how porous your brick is, you might need to wait a week or even longer. The surface needs to be fully dry before you apply any primer or paint.
Touch the brick in several areas, especially lower sections near the ground where moisture tends to linger. If it feels cool or damp, wait longer.
Choosing the Right Paint for Brick
Masonry paint designed for brick and stone performs differently than standard exterior paint. These products are formulated to be breathable, allowing water vapor to escape while still providing protection and durability.
Some painters recommend mineral paint for brick because it’s highly breathable and bonds chemically with masonry surfaces. Lime wash is another traditional option that creates a beautiful, slightly textured appearance while allowing the brick to breathe naturally. However, lime wash requires more maintenance and needs to be reapplied more frequently than modern masonry paint.
Quality matters tremendously with brick painting. Cheap paint might save money initially, but it won’t perform well on porous masonry surfaces. Professional painters typically use premium products that are specifically designed for exterior brick and stone, ensuring better adhesion and longer-lasting results.
Your color paint choice affects more than aesthetics. Darker colors absorb more heat, which can impact how the painted brick performs over time. Light colors like white painted brick or soft gray reflect heat and tend to show less fading. Think about how much direct sun your house receives and factor that into your decision.
The Painting Process
Priming brick properly sets the foundation for everything that follows. Use a masonry primer that seals the porous surface and creates a uniform base for your topcoat. Some brick is so porous that it might need two coats of primer. The brick should no longer look thirsty, absorbing primer as fast as you apply it.
Application Methods
You have options for applying paint to brick walls. A paint sprayer covers large areas quickly and gets into all the crevices and texture of the brick surface. Spraying works particularly well for the main body of the house where you need speed and complete coverage.
Spraying requires careful preparation though. You’ll need to protect windows, the door, shutters, and any other surfaces you don’t want painted. Use painter’s tape and plastic sheeting to cover these areas thoroughly. The roof line needs attention too, as paint spray can drift onto shingles or gutters.
A roller works well for brick painting and gives you more control than spraying, especially around trim and detailed areas. Use a thick nap roller that can handle the textured surface of brick and push paint into the crevices. You’ll likely need to back-roll after spraying anyway if you want the best finish, so many professional painters combine both methods.
Brushing is slow but necessary for cutting in around windows, doors, and other areas where precision matters. You’ll definitely need brushes regardless of your primary application method.
How Many Coats?
Plan on applying two coats of paint over your primer. One coat rarely provides adequate coverage or durability on brick. The porous nature of the material and the texture of the surface both require multiple coats for proper coverage and color saturation.
Wait for each coat to dry completely before applying the next. This is particularly important with brick because moisture trapped in the paint layers can cause problems later. Check the paint manufacturer’s recommendations for recoat times and follow them.
What About Painted Brick Maintenance?
Once you paint brick, the material requires different maintenance than unpainted brick. You’ll need to watch for peeling, particularly around areas where moisture is present like near the ground, around windows, or on walls that don’t get much sun.
Painted brick will eventually need to be repainted. How often depends on the quality of materials used, how well the preparation was done, and your local climate. A properly executed paint job on brick should last 10 to 20 years before needing attention.
Clean painted brick periodically using a gentle power wash or scrubbing with mild soap and water. Regular maintenance keeps the surface looking fresh and helps you spot any potential problems early before they become serious.
Alternatives to Traditional Paint
If you love the idea of color but want to maintain more of the brick’s natural texture and breathability, consider lime wash. This traditional coating soaks into the brick rather than sitting on top of it like paint. The appearance is softer and more varied, with subtle color variations that many people find appealing.
Lime wash offers several advantages:
- Highly breathable so moisture escapes easily without causing problems
- Creates a softer, more organic appearance with natural color variation
- Ages beautifully developing a patina over time rather than simply looking worn
- Can be reapplied without stripping the old layers when maintenance is needed
Staining is another option, though it works better on some types of brick than others. Stains penetrate the surface and allow the brick texture to show through while changing the color. The effect is more subtle than paint but can beautifully update the appearance of your brick home.
Let Professionals Handle the Complexity
Reading through all these steps, you might be realizing that house painting involves considerably more complexity than slapping some paint on the walls. The preparation alone takes days, and getting the proper materials, applying them correctly, and ensuring everything is sealed and protected requires experience and expertise.
Professional painters who specialize in painting exterior brick know how to assess your specific situation, choose appropriate products, and execute the work so it lasts. They have the proper equipment, understand the nuances of working with masonry surfaces, and can complete the project efficiently while you focus on other things.
At Sherwood Paint, we’ve painted countless brick homes and understand exactly what it takes to do the job right. We’ll handle everything from initial assessment and repairs through final cleanup, leaving you with a beautifully transformed home.
Thinking about giving your brick house a whole new look? Call us at (704) 924-1800 or message us here, and let’s talk about making your vision a reality.