The team painted our kitchen cabinets, and we couldn’t believe the difference. The doors and drawers have a smooth, factory-like finish, and the new color made our entire kitchen feel more modern.
Brick and Masonry Painting in Santa Monica, CA, Done So the Wall Can Still Breathe
Santa Monica Expert Painting is the Westside's trusted expert in brick and masonry finishing, specializing in breathable silicate mineral coatings, traditional limewash, and alkali-resistant masonry priming. We offer German schmear, chimney refinishing, and masonry conditioner and stain-blocking systems. Fully licensed, insured and bonded.
From reading the efflorescence pattern on a north-facing garden wall to specifying a full breathable coating system across every masonry surface on the lot, our team handles every detail. Serving Santa Monica and nearby Brentwood, Beverly Hills and Venice, we would rather talk you out of a bad coating decision than sell you one.
- Free masonry assessment
- Efflorescence dealt with at source
- Mortar repaired before coating
- Licensed, insured and bonded
Reviews
What clients say about our masonry work
Friendly service, beautiful results, and great attention to detail.
Santa Monica Expert Painting repaired several damaged areas of drywall before repainting our bedroom. The repaired sections blend perfectly with the surrounding walls, and the finished room looks clean and polished.
The exterior paint had faded badly from years of sun exposure. After the project was completed, our home had stronger curb appeal and a fresh, updated appearance. The trim work looks especially sharp.
Our bathroom painting project came out beautifully. Clean edges and a flawless finish!
We needed our office repainted without creating a major disruption for employees. Santa Monica Expert Painting handled the project efficiently and gave the entire workspace a brighter, more professional appearance.
The painters took great care around our furniture, flooring, and fixtures. Our walls and ceilings look fantastic, and there were no drips or messy edges left behind.
Our new accent wall looks perfect. It completely changed the feel of the room.
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Understand this first: painting brick is close to permanent
We would rather talk you out of a bad coating decision than sell you one.
Brick can be painted. Getting paint back off is a different story. Chemical strippers, media blasting and repeated passes cost multiples of the original paint job, and aggressive stripping erodes the fired outer skin of the brick, which is the durable part. Once that face is open, the brick absorbs more water than it was built to.
So the decision deserves a real conversation, not a colour card. We ask whether the wall has ever been coated, whether the mortar is original lime or a later cement repoint, and what it does in winter. On a 1920s chimney the answer is often limewash or a mineral coating. On a 1970s CMU retaining wall, acrylic is fine.
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What we paint and coat
Masonry here is usually pieces rather than a whole facade, and each piece has its own exposure.
Brick chimneys and chases
The most weather-beaten masonry on the house, taking sun, damp and wind on four faces.
CMU block, slump block and retaining walls
Perimeter and side-yard walls across Sunset Park and Mid-City. Retaining walls hold soil, which means they hold water, so breathability is not optional.
Stem walls, steps, planters and interior brick
The concrete band between grade and siding, entry steps, porch aprons, raised planters, and fireplace surrounds where breathability matters less and finish quality matters more.
| System | Breathable | Where it belongs |
|---|---|---|
| Potassium silicate mineral paint | Yes | Historic brick and lime mortar. Bonds chemically into the substrate |
| Limewash | Yes | Pre-war brick and chimneys. Absorbed into damp masonry, cures by carbonation |
| German schmear | Yes | A thinned mortar wash troweled over brick for a softened, old-world face |
| Masonry conditioner | Sealer | Powdery or chalking masonry that will not otherwise hold a coating |
| Alkali-resistant primer | Partial | High-pH block, new mortar, patched concrete |
| 100% acrylic masonry paint | Partial | Modern CMU block, stem walls, planters, non-historic surfaces |
Limewash is slaked lime in water. It cures by carbonation, calcium hydroxide reacting with atmospheric carbon dioxide to become calcium carbonate, and calcite double-refracts light, which is why a limewashed wall glows in low afternoon sun. It is absorbed into masonry rather than adhered, so the substrate is dampened first. It is weak against driven rain unless modified with pozzolans, cement or linseed oil, and each of those trades away breathability. Silicate mineral paints keep most of the permeability while resisting water better.
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Breathability and trapped moisture
Masonry is designed to take on water and give it back.
Rain and marine damp wet the face, the wall dries outward, the cycle repeats. Wrap that wall in an impermeable film and water still gets in, through mortar joints, ground contact or a failed cap, but now it cannot leave the same way. It comes back out as blistering paint, spalling brick face, or a white bloom of salts.
That bloom is efflorescence: soluble salts carried to the surface by moisture inside the wall. It is a symptom, not a cosmetic issue. We dry-brush the deposits off, neutralize the surface, fix the water path, and only then coat. Anyone quoting masonry paint without asking where the moisture comes from is quoting a two-year finish.
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Our masonry process
Six stages, with a three-foot sample square approved in daylight before anything else is coated.
Assess and test
Mortar type, a water absorption test, a moisture reading, and a check for spalling or loose brick face.
Repoint and repair
Failed joints tuckpointed with mortar matched in strength to the original.
Wash
Low pressure with masonry-appropriate cleaners. High pressure drives water deep into brick and mortar.
Neutralize salts
Efflorescence removed and the surface rinsed and dried before anything goes on.
Condition or prime
Masonry conditioner on chalking surfaces, alkali-resistant primer on high-pH block and fresh mortar.
Sample, then apply
Limewash and mineral coatings brushed in thin passes on dampened substrate, acrylic systems sprayed and back-rolled into the joint profile.
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When we say no
Turning down work is part of the job. We will not coat masonry in these cases.
Spalling brick. When faces are popping off, the fired skin has failed and the brick is saturating. Coating it seals moisture behind a compromised face and speeds the loss.
Active moisture. A leaking chimney cap, a downspout dumping at a wall base, grade above the weep line, a failed flashing. Fix the water, then talk finish.
Repointing that has not cured. Fresh mortar is strongly alkaline and needs cure time before it accepts a coating.
Historic brick a client wants sealed in film. On pre-1930 masonry we offer limewash and mineral coating options or we pass on the scope. The Third Street Neighborhood Historic District, designated July 1, 1990 with 38 contributing buildings built between 1875 and 1930, is exactly the stock where a wrong coating does lasting damage, and our restoration crews for pre-war homes work there with the Landmarks Commission process in mind.
Why Santa Monica homeowners choose us
We are fully licensed, insured and bonded, and send a certificate of insurance before the first crew day. Lead painters are RRP certified for pre-1978 housing, which covers most of the masonry here. Every hand-applied finish gets a sample panel, and one crew stays on the job from start to finish.
What shapes the estimate
Repointing volume, wall height and access, the number of masonry elements on the lot, and film-forming paint versus a hand-applied finish.
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Frequently asked questions about masonry painting
Can painted brick be returned to bare brick?
Sometimes, and never cheaply. Stripping costs multiples of the paint job and risks eroding the fired outer skin. Treat painting brick as a one-way decision.
What is German schmear?
A thinned mortar wash troweled over brick and partially wiped back, leaving mortar in the joints and a softened veil across the faces. Breathable, and it ages well.
Will limewash hold up in Santa Monica weather?
On protected and semi-exposed walls, yes, with periodic refresh. On a wall taking driven rain off the bay, silicate mineral paint holds better while staying permeable.
Why is my block wall powdering white?
Efflorescence. Water inside the wall is carrying soluble salts to the surface. The deposits come off, the moisture source gets fixed, and only then does the wall get coated.
How long does masonry paint last here?
On a modern block wall with an acrylic system, 7 to 10 years is fair. Limewash thins gradually rather than peeling, and many owners refresh it every 5 to 7 years by choice.
Do you repoint mortar joints?
Yes, matched in strength to the original. Hard cement mortar in a soft lime wall pushes stress into the brick and causes damage over time.
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Related services and service areas
Pre-war brick chimneys, steps and garden walls north of Montana in 90402; CMU and slump block perimeter and stem walls through Sunset Park and Mid-City; canyon retaining walls and estate perimeter masonry in Brentwood; 1920s and 1930s Spanish and Mediterranean detail in Beverly Hills; and salt-loaded street-side block in Hermosa Beach.
- Stucco Painting
- Limewash & Mineral Coatings
- Marine & Coastal Exterior Repaint
- Exterior House Painting
- Deck & Fence Staining
- Historic Home Restoration Painting
Every painting service we offer.
Service areas
The full coverage list is on the areas we serve page.
Request a free masonry painting estimate
Send photos, or better, let us look at the wall. We will tell you what the masonry is doing and whether a coating is the right answer at all.
- Free written estimate
- Breathable systems specified by substrate
- Licensed, insured and bonded