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Chimney & Fireplace

Chimney has been replastered and painted - salt crystals and different shades

Anonymous user 03/03/2024 - 3.00 PM

Hello, I'm having a few problems with my chimney. We recently took out the old gas fireplace and had it capped. We broke the chimney to make the hole to its original size and then as it was too big we got a bricklayer who bricked it up slightly and raised the floor so it's just an open fireplace now. However, the repointing was done with cement and now salt crystals constantly form. Also, we painted the chimney breast a grey colour but there are different shades going up which will not go away no matter how many times I paint it. Any reason why? I'm having to wallpaper it and then paint it which is a lot of hassle and also cost as I have to buy more stuff. I feel like I'm just wasting a lot of money now! Any help would be appreciated

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1 Answer

Anonymous user

Hi, in response to your question, the salt is natural and can be in the brick, or if the pointing had washing up liquid (retarder) in it this can also cause salt, a white stain or some times light brown depending if the brick is slightly porous. Can usually be cured with gloss oil based paint (not water based), two coats then just paint as normal with emulsion. Is your chimney capped with a breather cap? As would be required to stop a build up of condensation, if not then change it, these are available for around thirty to forty pounds on the internet. Hope this helps Kind regards Charlie

Answered5 October 2013