Why does nobody talk about how tricky it is to paint brick fireplaces

I was at a friend's house in Columbus last weekend and she showed me her painted brick fireplace. She did it herself last year and it looked good from across the room, but up close you could see all these little bubbles and rough spots where the paint didn't stick right. She said she used a regular roller and it took her three coats with a cheap latex paint from the hardware store. Has anyone here found a good method for sealing brick before painting so you don't end up with that patchy look?

2 comments

2 Comments

riley_bell1mo ago

Did you see that YouTube video from the guy who restores old houses where he talked about using a masonry primer before painting brick? He said you gotta let the brick dry out for a good week after cleaning it, otherwise moisture gets trapped and causes those bubbles you saw on her fireplace. I tried the primer trick on a rental house once and it made a big difference, the paint actually stuck smooth compared to when I skipped it before.

caleb_sanchez1mo ago

Honestly, a week sounds way overkill for just painting brick.