Depends on how soft the remaining mortar is. If you can scrape it out with
your fingers, it would be better to remove it and replace it.

Assuming you do not want to paint, you might try an acrylic sealer used for
tile and stone floors. It will leave a flat sheen (similar to varnish) but
not cover up the look of the mortar.

I doubt a penetrating sealer (concrete waterproofer) would stop the
deterioration of the mortar. but that would leave the brick unchanged in
appearance if it did work.

Black dust is not the color I would expect, grey maybe but black??? Are you
sure it is the mortar and not something else.

Also look into other grout sealing products.


"Zeta" wrote in message
...
The apartment I am currently renting has an enclosed sunroom with exposed,
unpainted brick walls. The mortar between the bricks is crumbling,
leaving a black powder on everything in the room. Is there any product I
can use to seal the mortar. Thanks for your suggestions.

The apartment I am currently renting has an enclosed sunroom with exposed,
unpainted brick walls. The mortar between the bricks is crumbling, leaving
a black powder on everything in the room. Is there any product I can use to
seal the mortar. Thanks for your suggestions.

Check with your landlord of course, I would think they'd want to fix
that since it's symbolic of a potential larger issue. I would not seal
it without asking the landlord. Plus if you seal it, it's just gonna
end up falling apart eventually unless the cause is found.

Mortar crumbles generally through age and moisture. Inside, it's not
supposed to do that !

Zeta wrote:
The apartment I am currently renting has an enclosed sunroom with
exposed, unpainted brick walls. The mortar between the bricks is
crumbling, leaving a black powder on everything in the room. Is
there any product I can use to seal the mortar. Thanks for your
suggestions.

How old is the stuff and could that be mold?

--
Joseph Meehan

Dia duit

Thanks for your suggestions, everyone.

I have re-examined the dust and it does look like little black specks. That
is the colour of the stuff between the bricks.

The building is quite old, it dates back to 1914. Thought this was
something I would be able to take care of, but as others suggested I will
consult my landlord first.

Thanks again for the help.


"PipeDown" wrote in message
. net...
Depends on how soft the remaining mortar is. If you can scrape it out
with your fingers, it would be better to remove it and replace it.

Assuming you do not want to paint, you might try an acrylic sealer used
for tile and stone floors. It will leave a flat sheen (similar to
varnish) but not cover up the look of the mortar.

I doubt a penetrating sealer (concrete waterproofer) would stop the
deterioration of the mortar. but that would leave the brick unchanged in
appearance if it did work.

Black dust is not the color I would expect, grey maybe but black??? Are
you sure it is the mortar and not something else.

Also look into other grout sealing products.


"Zeta" wrote in message
...
The apartment I am currently renting has an enclosed sunroom with
exposed, unpainted brick walls. The mortar between the bricks is
crumbling, leaving a black powder on everything in the room. Is there
any product I can use to seal the mortar. Thanks for your suggestions.