Mortar spots on deck - cleaning

[BOB OLINGER]

I accidently got a little sloppy and tracked some mortar onto my deck boards (Trex brand). It's dried. Now, I need to remove them. I've used a solution of TSP & water using a stiff scrub brush. This seems to work, but is slow, tough. Does anyone have other cleaning agent solutions. My wife has reminded me to be "less sloppy" next time :rolleyes:

[Bill Dufour]

Bleach or any other acid will dissolve it. Check first to see if it bleaches the color out in a inconspicuous area.

[Ole Anderson]

Bleach is not an acid, it is actually an alkali. Generally masons use muriatic acid and a stiff brush to wash mortar residue off bricks. If the Trex has a plastic coating you should be good to go with muriatic acid, if it is the old style composite Trex, test it first in an inconspicuous area. Just rinse it well when you are done. The longer you let the cement cure, the more difficult it is to remove.

[BOB OLINGER]

Bleach is not an acid, it is actually an alkali. Generally masons use muriatic acid and a stiff brush to wash mortar residue off bricks. If the Trex has a plastic coating you should be good to go with muriatic acid, if it is the old style composite Trex, test it first in an inconspicuous area. Just rinse it well when you are done. The longer you let the cement cure, the more difficult it is to remove.


Ole,thanks for the suggestion. I previously considered Muratic acid but withdrew due to possibly being too harsh. However, I tried it on a inconspicuous spot, worked good. So, I continued with all the areas, and it worked GREAT. A key was to rinse very thoroughly. Thanks, again, for your recommendation.

Bob O