Tips on removing paint from brick

Kevin Gladd of Potomac Valley Brick in Maryland at http://www.pvbrick.com recommended using Sure KIean Heavy Duty Paint Stripper. He suggested to follow the directions for applying it carefully.

We dug a little deeper and found that Prosoco, a leader in masonry cleaners and sealers, makes this product. From the reading, this is pretty strong stuff. If it's any consolation, Sure KIean Heavy Duty Paint Stripper was used on the Empire State Building to remove gray paint. Seems like the building's owners painted it gray in the 1960s since it was much easy to paint over the years of dirt than to remove it. See the newsletter story "The Bigger They Come" on the product literature page

The details of the Heavy Duty Paint Stripper provide a wealth of information. I'm not so sure that this is a Do It Yourself project, especially if you have a large area. From reading the Heavy Duty Paint Stripper literature. It should be kept away from metal and wood. Air temperature should also be above 50 degree F when you apply it and leave it to dwell. You have to also use a solution to rinse off the stripper.

You may want to buy a can of the Prosoco Heavy Duty Paint Stripper and try it on an inconspicuous part of the brick. You'll get an idea of the time it takes and it it produces the results you want. Your other option is to call a company that specializes in paint removal such as John Lambert at Abstract Masonry Restoration.

Please let me know how it turns out.