Efflorescence
and masonry cleaning.

The inquiry

Choose the cleaner only after diagnosing the condition.

Following a masonry webinar, an attendee asked for more information about a product mentioned for cleaning efflorescence on a client’s masonry.

The question

A client needs to clean apparent efflorescence from masonry. What product should be used?

The expert answer

Efflorescence is a term frequently used to describe a wide range of different but related masonry conditions. Before a cleaning product can be selected, the condition must be identified more precisely.

Florida Masonry’s expert noted more than 50 years of experience using PROSOCO products for masonry cleaning and arranged for the company’s New York representative to contact the person making the inquiry. Even with that product experience, several clarifications were still necessary before recommending the correct cleaning material.

Start with the substrate and the stain

The evaluation should establish the type of masonry involved and distinguish among conditions that can look similar. The essential questions include:

• What masonry material is affected—brick, concrete block, stone, or another substrate?
• Is the condition new-building bloom, efflorescence, white scum, or a different deposit?
• How old is the masonry?
• Is an active moisture condition contributing to the deposit?

Investigate salts and moisture

Two key elements are central to this issue: insoluble salts and moisture. The visible deposit may be a symptom of a larger moisture problem rather than a condition that can be resolved through surface cleaning alone.

That possibility should be considered before the cleaning approach is finalized. The product and process must respond to the actual masonry material, the type of deposit, the age of the construction, and the moisture conditions present.

Follow the outcome

The expert asked to be kept informed as the condition was evaluated and the appropriate cleaning material was selected. Follow-up is valuable because the response of the masonry can help confirm whether the original diagnosis was correct or whether an underlying moisture source still requires attention.