IMI Webinar Series - Existing Masonry Cleaning: Approaches and Methodology
Masonry structures are built to last, and proper cleaning and maintenance help them perform at their best for generations. This course explores how to align cleaning goals with project objectives, specify appropriate cleaning protocols, and follow industry standards. You’ll see how sequencing, environmental conditions, protection measures, and field mock-ups all contribute to successful cleaning outcomes. By examining common soiling conditions and current cleaning technologies, you’ll gain practical strategies to preserve and extend the life of masonry buildings safely and effectively. We’ll also discuss how assessing existing masonry conditions and selecting compatible cleaning methods ensures both beauty and long-term durability.
Learning Objectives:
- Describe the properties of masonry materials and explain how those characteristics influence the safe and effective selection of cleaning methods and products.
- Identify current masonry cleaning methodologies and evaluate how each supports long-term material performance and preservation.
- Compare maintenance cleaning practices to capital cleaning campaigns and determine when each approach is appropriate to protect building integrity.
- Explain how improper or excessive cleaning can compromise masonry performance, durability, and appearance, and how to avoid permanent material damage.
About the Speaker:
Casey Weisdock
Director of Industry and Development and Technical Services, IMI
Casey is an architectural conservator whose professional experience spans preservation design, project management, and contracting/implementation. She is a graduate of Temple University and the University of Pennsylvania.
Previously, Casey served as an architectural conservator and site manager, focused primarily on the preservation of historic structures through research of traditional materials, and implementation of traditional repair methods and contemporary restoration techniques.
Today, Casey supports the masonry restoration industry internationally, and is also a regional director, providing support for all masonry projects, new and existing, at the local level. She's a developer and instructor of the Historic Masonry Preservation Certificate (HMPC) training offered through the International Masonry Training and Education Foundation (IMTEF). Casey is also the Board Chair Emeritus of the Association for Preservation Technology– Delaware Valley Chapter (APT-DVC).