Letter 42047

How do you use hydrochloric acid to clean brick paving without doing damage to bricks and garden  

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I want to clean a large area of brick paving and was told to use hydrocloric acid, the label has fallen off bottle and I need to know how much to mix with water to use it safely to the bricks, garden and any pets around?

Jean Leach
householder - Perth , Western Australia

This is a hazardous material and should not be applied on a whim or unless you know exactly why you're doing it. It is NOT a cleaner and is not for cleaning brick; it is a destroyer of concrete and mortar and the reason it is used is to dissolve mortar stains from brick. If you have no label you don't know the starting concentration, Jean, so any talk of dilution ratio is meaningless. Take the bottle to a hazardous wate disposal facility, and buy a fresh one if you insist on using hydrochloric acid -- it's inexpensive stuff, but will kill your plants and certainly burn your pets if they are exposed to it. Good luck!

Ted Mooney, P.E.  finishing.com Brick, New Jersey

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