There is a fundamental problem with cleaning brick walls and it is brought on by the course and rough texture that is common with bricks. Because of their textured surface, you will often see it build up a lot of stuff like dust.
Naturally, the bricks that are on the outside of your home are going to take more of a beating than the bricks that are on the inside of your home. So it shouldn’t be much of a surprise to hear that the outside bricks are going to require routine cleaning much more often than those that are on the inside of your home. This is because of all the elements the outside bricks have to fight off.
Even though the bricks on the outside of your home get much dirtier much faster, the cleaning process is much easier as well. Typically all you need to do is hose it down with some water to get the dirt and grime off. Sometimes you might want to use Tri-sodium phosphate to get the harder to reach things as it is an extremely effective cleaning agent that is used on course materials just like brick; but be sure to be careful when you are using it.
Another one of the more effective brick cleaning methods is using ammonia. Here, all you really need to do is mix a little bit of ammonia with some water and apply to the bricks to clean it off. This is a very effective method, but like using TSP, be sure you are extra careful when handling it.
Although on the surface it may seem like the brick that is found in the interior of the house may be free of maintenance, this simply is not the case as the porous nature of the brick actually makes it just as susceptible to dirt and dust on the indoors as it is on the outdoors. Here it would be a mistake to use a power-washer, so instead opt for a hand cleaning which will maintain the red color of the brick.
One of the lesser-known methods to cleaning brick is actually by using a chemical by the name of boric acid. Here you dip a towel in a little bit of this acid and firmly press it against the wall, which is sure to help get rid of any unwanted additions to your brick wall.
Just as the name implies, boric acid can be rather dangerous to work with. Because of this, it is always a good idea to take the proper precautions before using it to make sure that you don’t get hurt. These precautions will include wearing protective eyewear and gloves which will prevent you from getting hurt form the boric acid.
Remember that it is ultimately up to you to decide what the best course of action for your wall. If you aren’t dealing with a big amount of grime and dirt, you will probably want to avoid some of the more “extreme” solutions like using boric acid or a power washer.