Brick Painting in Nashville, TN
Brick Painting Done the Way Brick Needs It
Painting brick is one of the biggest curb-appeal changes you can make to a Middle Tennessee home. A dated orange or red brick ranch becomes a clean white farmhouse. A two-tone builder brick finally matches. A dark 1970s exterior looks twice as bright from the street.
It is also one of the easiest exterior jobs to get wrong. Brick is porous and textured, it holds moisture, and the mortar joints take paint differently than the brick face. Skip the cleaning, use the wrong product or roll straight across the surface, and you get thin spots in every joint, peeling within a few seasons and a finish that is very hard to undo.
We paint and limewash brick on homes across Nashville and Middle Tennessee. Every job starts with reading the brick and the mortar, because the condition of the masonry decides what will hold.
No sales visit needed. Send us photos of each side of the house, close-ups of the brick and any cracked mortar or white staining, and we will send a fixed-price quote within 24 hours. Use the form below to get started.
Paint or Limewash? Decide This First
There are two ways to change the color of brick, and they look and behave very differently.
Paint gives a solid, even color. It covers the brick completely, so the house reads as one clean surface: white, greige, charcoal, black, whatever you choose. It is the right call when you want a full change of color, when the brick is mismatched from additions, or when the brick has already been painted once.
Limewash soaks into the brick instead of sitting on top of it. It softens the color while letting the texture and some of the original brick show through, for a weathered, old-world look. It breathes, it wears gradually instead of peeling, and it can be lightened or partly washed back while it is fresh. We are trained and certified on Meoded limewash and use the full Meoded system on every limewash job.
If you are not sure which look you want, send photos anyway. We will tell you honestly which one suits your brick, and a color consultation can help you settle the color before anything goes on the wall.
What's Included
Brick and mortar assessment
We check for cracked or missing mortar, loose brick, efflorescence (the white chalky salt deposits that come from moisture moving through the wall), mildew, and any old paint or sealer. Efflorescence in particular tells us where water is getting in, and painting over it without dealing with it is the most common reason painted brick fails early.
Cleaning
Dirt, mildew, algae and salts come off before anything else. We wash at a pressure that cleans the brick without eroding soft brick faces or blowing out old mortar, then let the wall dry fully. Brick holds water for longer than siding, so drying time is part of the schedule, not something we rush.
Mortar touch-ups and repairs
Small cracks and gaps in mortar joints get filled so the paint film does not bridge a hole that water can get behind. Anything bigger, like loose brick, step cracks or foundation movement, we flag before we start so you can bring in a mason first.
Primer where the brick needs it
New or very porous brick and areas that have had efflorescence get a masonry primer. It seals the surface evenly so the topcoat does not soak in unevenly and look blotchy.
Two coats, worked into the joints
Brick is thirsty, and one coat never covers evenly. We apply two coats and work the paint into every mortar joint so there are no missed spots between bricks. On painted brick we recommend a satin exterior finish: it sheds water and cleans up well without the glare that a glossier sheen puts on brick texture.
Trim, gutters, shutters and doors
Painted brick changes how everything around it looks. Most of our brick jobs include trim, fascia, gutters, shutters and the front door in the same project, so the whole house is finished at once.
Masking, protection and a walkthrough
Windows, roofing, walkways, landscaping and fixtures get covered. Paint on unpainted brick paving or a stone walkway is far harder to fix than to prevent. We walk the finished house with you before we leave.
A Real Example
On a Hendersonville brick home we painted the full brick exterior in Benjamin Moore White Dove (OC-17) in satin, with the gutters in matte black for contrast. White Dove is a warm white that softens brick texture instead of looking stark, and it pairs well with black accents. The project came in at $7,000 to $10,000 including the gutters.
Every house is priced individually based on the square footage of brick, the number of stories, the condition of the masonry and how much trim is in scope.
Is Painting Brick a Good Idea?
For the right house, yes. Painting brick is close to permanent: getting paint back off brick takes chemical stripping or soda blasting and can damage the brick face. So it is worth being sure. In our experience:
- Paint it if the brick color is dated or clashes, if additions do not match, if the brick is stained or weathered, or if part of it is already painted.
- Consider limewash if you want a softer change and like the idea of some brick still showing through.
- Hold off if there are active moisture problems, major cracks or a lot of crumbling mortar. Those get fixed first, or the paint will fail along with them.
- Leave it if you love your brick as it is. Plenty of good brick should never be painted.
Picking a Color for Painted Brick
Brick is textured, so colors read differently on it than on a paint chip. Warm whites and soft off-whites are the most popular because they look clean without the cold, flat look of a stark white. Greige and mid-gray work well on traditional homes. Deep charcoal, navy and black are increasingly common on modern farmhouse and transitional homes, usually with white trim.
For ideas, including colors that go with brick you are keeping unpainted, see our guide to exterior paint colors for brick houses.
Interior Brick and Fireplaces
We also paint and limewash brick inside: fireplace surrounds, accent walls and exposed brick in older homes and lofts. A 1970s or 1980s red brick fireplace is one of the quickest ways to date a living room, and limewash or paint updates it in a day or two without touching the structure.
Where We Paint Brick
We work across Nashville and Middle Tennessee, including Nashville, Franklin, Brentwood, Hendersonville, Mt. Juliet, Murfreesboro and Spring Hill. Mid-century brick ranches in Donelson, Inglewood, Madison and Hendersonville are some of the most common brick homes we paint, along with 1990s and 2000s subdivision homes with brick fronts that no longer match the rest of the house.
When to Paint Brick
Exterior brick painting needs dry brick and mild weather. In Middle Tennessee, spring and early fall are ideal. Brick takes longer than siding to dry after rain or washing, so we watch the forecast for a run of dry days. Cold nights matter too: see how cold is too cold to paint. Spring dates book a few weeks out, so quote early if you want it done before summer.
Get Your Brick Painting Quote
Send photos of each side of the house, close-ups of the brick and mortar, and anything you want included like trim, gutters or shutters. You will have a fixed-price quote within 24 hours, with no visit and no time off work. Fill out the form below to get started.
