PAINTING BRICKWORK Brick walls may be painted in two ways— either to imitate the effect of pressed brick, or simply to give color with a gloss finish that will be effective in waterproofing the bricks.
If brick walls are to be painted with a gloss finish, four or more coats of oil paint may be used. The priming should be composed of white lead, mixed rather thin with raw linseed oil and a little drier. After puttying, a second coat of white lead paint, mixed a little stouter, should be given; and this should be followed by two additional coats, for which one part of zinc white to three parts of white lead are recommended, although a first-class job may be made with pure white lead and linseed oil, using, of course, such tinting colors as may be desired. A first class mixed paint may be substituted for the last two coats if desired, but in any case the first and second coats should be composed of white lead only.
Where it is desired to imitate a red pressed brick wall, the priming coat should be Venetian red, ground in linseed oil and thinned with raw linseed oil and a little drier. This should be
rubbed in well, and the work should then be thor oughly puttied up. For the second coat, one fourth white lead and three-fourths Venetian red should be used, thinned with two parts of linseed oil and one part of turpentine, with a small amount of drier. If a gloss finish is de sired, the last coat should be made from Vene tian red in oil, mixed with pure boiled linseed oil and a little drier. For a flat brick effect, less turpentine should be used in the second coat, and the finish may be made of Venetian red thinned with brown japan and turpentine. If it should be glossy at first, it will dry flat in a few weeks. It is better for the final coat, however, to use one of the prepared flat brick reds made by most paint manufacturers.
For other colored bricks, similar treatment is used, making the ground of the appropriate color and finishing with a flat brick color of the de sired shade. The joints are afterward penciled in with white lead or lampblack, if the effect of white or black mortar joints is desired.