Limewash Brick Painting in Austin

Typical cost in Austin

One brick wall, 100–250 sq ft$600 – $2,500+
One-story brick house$3,500 – $10,000+
Two-story brick house$5,500 – $16,000+

Austin Limewash Painting limewashes brick in Austin: whole houses, chimneys, garden walls and interior brick walls. Unpainted brick and its mortar both drink the lime in, so red, orange or mismatched brick can be shifted toward white, cream or a soft earth tone with the texture and joints still showing and no sheen at all.

Outside, the schedule follows the sun: walls are coated while they are in shade, and in the cooler months when the job allows. Brick work covers Austin and West Lake Hills, Rollingwood, Sunset Valley, Bee Cave, Pflugerville and Round Rock.

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Two-story brick house limewashed in soft warm white beside evergreen trees

Brick limewash options

Brick house exteriors

A whole house is the biggest brick job. Windows, doors, trim, roof edges and plants are protected, each wall is dampened before coating, and the crew moves around the house with the shade: walls facing west in the morning, walls facing east later in the day. Two-story walls need scaffolding or a lift.

Red, orange and mismatched brick

Strong red brick, or an addition that never quite matched, can be pulled together with limewash instead of painted over. A tinted first coat helps tone down heavy red before a lighter top coat, and a sample on a hidden corner shows how much of the original color will still come through.

Painted brick

Painted brick no longer absorbs, so the answer depends on the product. Some makers bridge sound paint with a bonding or mineral primer, flaking paint has to come off, and some limewash ranges are not meant for painted masonry at all. Where old paint is failing across a wall, stripping it and moving to a breathable finish is the longer-lasting fix.

Chimneys, planters and garden walls

Limewash can carry from the walls onto chimneys, brick planters, mailbox piers and garden walls. Treads, sills and other flat tops that hold water are left bare or get a protective treatment the maker approves. Cracked crowns and gaps in the mortar get fixed before any coat; lime will not seal them.

Interior brick walls

Indoors there is no sun or rain to plan around. Dust, kitchen grease and old sealer are the obstacles, and a water test shows whether the brick still absorbs. Afterward, clean it with a soft brush, never a scrubber.

Washed-back and aged looks

Some products let a still-wet coat be wiped or sprayed back to uncover more brick for an older look. In Austin heat a coat dries quickly, so the time to do it outside is shorter, and the look is always tried on a sample of your brick first.

Dining area with an interior brick wall limewashed in pale stone gray

What brick needs before limewash

Limewash only works on brick that is clean, sound and thirsty. The wall is washed of dirt, mildew and crumbling mortar, and any white crust is traced to its source, since it shows moisture moving through. Spray some water on: it should vanish into the brick within a minute or two. Glazed, very smooth or very hard-fired brick may shed it, and so will brick under an old water repellent.

Water problems come before any finish. Open joints, failed caulk, gutters that overflow onto the wall and sprinklers that soak it every day are fixed or adjusted first: a breathable finish helps a wall dry, but it cannot stop new water coming in.

Which exterior surfaces we limewash

These services cover absorbent masonry: unpainted brick, natural stone, concrete block and cement stucco. Siding, painted trim and fiber-cement board get ordinary exterior paint and are outside this scope; limewash makers disagree on some of those surfaces.

If the same house has a limestone front or a stucco wing, read limewash stone and limewash stucco and concrete as well, so the whole exterior is planned together.

Brick limewash in Austin heat

Brick in summer sun gets much hotter than the air, and lime that dries too fast cures weak and powdery. Makers set their own limits, but almost all rule out direct sun and sun-heated walls, so in summer each wall is coated early, while it is still in shade, and the brick is kept damp as the coat goes on.

Exterior limewash wears slowly, most on the walls that take the most weather. A wash and a new coat on those walls bring the color back.

Request a free limewash quote

Bare or painted brick, one wall or the whole house? Tell us that and the address, and we can lay out the options. We'll get back to you soon with an estimate or any questions we have. Estimates are free and there's no obligation.

Call (737) 321-7635