Hello Wall
The Wall has been conquered. After countless hours of chiseling, a few minor injuries, and no less than a dozen trips to Home Depot, the brick is exposed, cleaned, and ready to be admired. Proof as shared on Dan's Instagram feed:
We certainly learned a thing or two during this project. Should you ever try to expose a brick wall of your own, keep a few things in mind:
1. Buy the right chisel the first time you go to Home Depot.
I'll let you guess which of these two items we purchased first and which we had to go back for the very same day. If not for our return visit, we would certainly still be chiseling today.
Probably not the right chisel.
Bingo.
Other important tools to have include a shop vac, a sturdy drop cloth, proper safety gear, and a Jambox.
2. I stand by this:
3. Don't try to host a party.
It might seem like a good idea to have company over during the demo phase if only so you can impress your guests with the amount of manual labor you are capable of and your new vocabulary (chisel! shop vac! muriatic acid!), but unless you have a face mask and safety goggles for each of your guests, advise them to stay far far away from your party.
4. A grill brush > a regular brush.
A lot of blogs recommend using a regular old stiff brush to clean off the bricks, but we found great success with grill brushes. Their bristles are wire, so be careful not to scratch the brick, but these brushes have nice long arms to help you reach tough spots so that the brick is as clean as possible before applying the muriatic acid.
5. You will have regrets.
There will come a moment when you regret ever hammering a chisel into your plaster. Would plaster have been so bad? Will your arms ever work again after this is through? How much asbestos am I inhaling right now?
If this happens, take a break, drink a High Life, and listen to a song that honors your wall.