Question: Why would you want to whitewash brick? How do you do it?

Answer: Whitewashing can be a beautiful and lower-maintenance alternative to painting your entire brick exterior. Though today’s standard exterior paints are specially formulated to hold tight to masonry, they still require a good deal of touch up and maintenance. Whitewashing, on the other hand, tends to look even better over time as it ages, and it gives your home a nice English cottage look.

Step 1: Prep the Surface
Unlike painting, which require scrubbing of the brick, whitewash can be applied directly to the brick. However, it’s a good idea to wet the brick before whitewashing to help the whitewash stick.

Step 2: Create Your Whitewash
Mix a 50-pound bag of lime with 10 pounds of table salt, then add water until the mixture has a pancake batter consistency.

Step 3: Apply Whitewash
You may use a roller, but a stiff brush usually gives the best-looking results. For a weathered look, vary the thickness of the whitewash – areas covered more lightly will allow more brick to show through.

Step 4: Rinse Off Random Areas
For a genuine weathered look, wash off some of the whitewash several hours after you apply it. Try to make the areas you wash off random so you’ll avoid too-regular patterns and the “aging” will look more authentic.