Chalking brick stains may or may not be a problem

Those chalky white stains on your bricks could signal a big problem.

It could be paint oxidizing and washing down off window trim and siding. If so, no cause for alarm. It's just unsightly. Or it could be something far more serious: efflorescence, mineral deposits left when water passes through bricks and evaporates on the surface.

To check, wash the chalky stain off. If it stays away it's OK. If it returns or gets worse, water is moving through the wall and you've got a problem: that's efflorescence. And you should call a masonry professional.