DIYbanter - View Single Post - decorating concrete blocks to make them look like bricks?

Weatherlawyer

wrote:
This would probably sounds too wacky for all the pro out there, but
surely there must be a way of turning concrete blocks into lookalike
bricks?!
I am about to rebuild an external wall (the back only) and I would like
to use blocks instead of bricks (for costs and timing reasons).
The main problem is a cosmetic one as I am dealing with a terrace house
and all the other houses use red bricks.

Here are some ideas:

1) I decided to do an experiment using a router to carve brick patterns
into a block. The final result looks fine (the bricks part should be
painted), but the router bit is badly worn out.

2) Now I am thinking of using an angle grinder to do most of the
carving and using the router where the grinder would be unpracticable
(mortar junctions).

3) Another idea would be to use stucco like material to 'build' bricks
on the face of blocks.

4) On a lesser impact, why not use a thick layer of texture paint?

5) Or maybe there are out there merchants selling decorative blocks
which looks like bricks?

We used to have a poster on here that was into pargetting, which is
what you are after IIRYC. You might look her up. She vowed never to
return one day. I believe someone has snaffled her identity out of
respect for her.

Either that or she is an idiot.