Brickwork tells the story of a house — and in Manchester it is usually a story of soot, traffic film, green algae on the shaded side and white salt staining blooming out of the mortar. A good brick clean does not make a Victorian terrace look new; it makes it look loved.
We clean brick and exterior walls across Greater Manchester — Manchester, Salford, Stockport, Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Wigan and the surrounding towns. The methods are paint-safe and mortar-safe: controlled pressure, the right treatments for the staining, and a careful eye on older brickwork that needs a gentler hand.
What is brick & exterior wall cleaning?
Brick and exterior wall cleaning is the removal of soot, traffic pollution, algae, efflorescence and general weathering from brickwork, stone sills and masonry walls. It is restoration-minded cleaning: the aim is to bring back the brick's natural colour and character without damaging the face of the brick or the mortar holding it together.
Different problems need different answers. Algae and green growth respond to treatment and a controlled wash; soot and traffic film need a degreasing pre-soak; white salt efflorescence needs a specialist approach rather than more water. We diagnose the staining first and clean it accordingly, instead of blasting everything the same way.
How we do it
- Survey the brickwork and mortar: We check the age and condition of the brick — soft Victorian stock bricks need far more care than modern engineering brick — and look at the mortar joints for crumbling, cracks or previous repointing. Fragile areas are marked for a gentle wash or worked around.
- Identify the staining: Soot, algae, efflorescence and paint splashes all clean differently, so we identify what we are dealing with on each elevation. This decides the treatment: algae gets a biocide pre-soak, soot gets a degreaser dwell, and salt staining gets a specialist efflorescence treatment rather than plain water.
- Protect the surroundings: Windows and doors are pre-wetted, garden beds below the walls are covered or soaked, and any painted timber — sills, doors, fascias — is masked or avoided. Run-off is managed so treatments do not sit on surfaces they were not meant for.
- Clean wall by wall: Each elevation is pre-treated, left to dwell, then washed with pressure matched to the brick — moderate on sound modern brickwork, restrained on older stock. Stone sills and lintels are cleaned with a softer touch, and paint splashes are worked individually rather than blasted.
- Rinse and report: Everything is rinsed thoroughly, the garden and paths are left clean, and we report what we found: perished mortar that wants repointing, spalled bricks, or damp issues the clean has revealed. A clean wall shows its true condition, and you deserve to know it.
Why have it done
- Lifts soot, traffic film and decades of city grime
- Removes green algae from shaded elevations
- Treats white salt efflorescence properly, not just wetting it
- Mortar-safe methods protect older brickwork
- Stone sills and lintels cleaned with a gentler touch
Efflorescence: the white staining that keeps coming back
Those white, powdery blooms on brickwork are efflorescence — salts drawn out of the brick and mortar by moisture, left behind when the water evaporates. Washing them with plain water just dissolves them temporarily; as the wall dries, they reappear.
The proper approach is a specialist efflorescence treatment that neutralises the salts, combined with finding where the moisture is coming from — often a leaking gutter or failed pointing above. We treat the staining and tell you the likely cause, because cleaning the symptom without addressing the source is money wasted.
Paint-safe, mortar-safe: how we protect old brick
Victorian and Edwardian brick in Manchester is often soft — the face can blow off under a hard jet, and lime mortar crumbles if it is hammered. We clean these walls the way they need: lower pressure, longer dwell times on the treatments, and a fan lance kept at a respectful distance.
Painted brick gets the same caution. Sound paint survives a careful wash; flaking paint will come away, and we will warn you about that before we start rather than after. If the walls are rendered rather than brick, our render soft washing page covers the gentler method those finishes need.
What does it cost?
As a rough guide, brick and exterior wall cleaning across Greater Manchester typically falls between £150 and £400 depending on the size of the property, how many elevations need cleaning and the type of staining — every job is quoted free after a look at photos or a quick site visit.
Brick & Exterior Wall Cleaning FAQs
How much does brick wall cleaning cost in Manchester?
Most homes across Greater Manchester fall between £150 and £400. The size of the property and how many elevations need cleaning matter most, then the staining — heavy soot or efflorescence takes specialist treatment and longer dwell times. Older brickwork also takes longer because it needs a gentler approach. Photos or a visit get you an exact free quote.
Will jet washing damage old brickwork or mortar?
It can if done carelessly, which is why we survey the brick first. Soft Victorian stock bricks and lime mortar get lower pressure and longer chemical dwell times instead of force — the treatments do the work the jet cannot safely do. We also flag crumbling mortar before we start. The walls should come out cleaner with the brick faces and joints intact.
Can you remove the white salt stains on my brickwork?
Yes — that white bloom is efflorescence, and it needs a specialist treatment rather than just water, which only dissolves it temporarily. We treat the salts properly and, just as importantly, look for where the moisture is coming from — often a leaking gutter or failed pointing above — so you know how to stop it returning.
My brickwork is painted — can it still be cleaned?
Yes, with care. Sound, well-adhered paint comes through a careful wash without trouble, and the clean often transforms a painted wall. Flaking or poorly bonded paint may come away under the wash, though — we check the paintwork during the survey and warn you honestly about any areas at risk before we start.
Do you clean stone sills and lintels too?
Yes, they are included when we clean the walls around them. Stone sills, lintels and copings get a gentler clean than the brickwork — lower pressure and a soft brush on stubborn marks — because stone can pit under a hard jet. They are often the dirtiest part of the elevation, collecting every rain run, so including them makes a visible difference.
How do I clean a brick wall myself?
Brush off loose dirt, then scrub with warm water and a stiff brush — for green algae, a diluted white vinegar solution left to dwell for 15 minutes works well. Rinse from the top down so dirty water does not streak the cleaned sections below. Never use a pressure washer on old or soft brick, and never use brick acid unless you know exactly what you are doing — it can burn the brick face and the mortar. DIY suits light grime; soot, efflorescence and deep staining need professional treatment.
How do I get mortar splashes off bricks?
Fresh mortar splashes come off with water and a stiff brush if you catch them within a day or two. Dried mortar needs a specialist brick-cleaning treatment — usually a carefully diluted acid-based cleaner — applied briefly and rinsed thoroughly, because leaving it on too long etches the brick face. This is genuinely a job that is easy to get wrong, so unless the splashes are small and you are confident, it is worth having done professionally. We deal with mortar and cement staining regularly.
How long does brick wall cleaning take?
A single elevation of a typical house takes half a day; a full house with all four elevations is usually a full day, sometimes two for a large detached property with heavy soot or efflorescence. The treatments set the pace — degreasers and efflorescence treatments need proper dwell times, and rushing them is how walls get damaged. Older brickwork takes longer because the lower-pressure method is more deliberate. We confirm the timescale when we quote.
Can you remove paint splashes from brickwork?
Usually, yes. Small paint splashes and drips are worked individually with a specialist paint remover and a gentle wash, rather than blasted — blasting drives paint deeper into porous brick. Thick or old paint, especially masonry paint that has bonded well, may not come off completely without damaging the brick, and we will tell you that honestly during the survey. What we will not do is strip a whole painted wall back to brick — that is a different job entirely.
One side of my house is green — is that damp or just algae?
Almost always just algae, and it is the most common thing we see on Manchester brickwork. The shaded, north-facing elevation stays damp longest after rain, so algae colonises it while the sunny side stays clean. It is a surface growth, not rising damp — though if the same wall also shows white salt staining or the mortar is crumbling, there may be a moisture source worth investigating, like a leaking gutter. A clean will reveal the true picture.
How often should brickwork be cleaned?
Most Manchester homes need it every three to five years. Brick does not re-soil as fast as a patio or a roof — soot and traffic film build slowly, and a proper clean with biocide keeps algae at bay for years. The exception is heavily shaded elevations and homes near busy roads, which go green or grey faster. If you are seeing white salt efflorescence return quickly, the priority is finding the moisture source, not cleaning more often.
Brick & Exterior Wall Cleaning across Greater Manchester
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