Removing cement from bricks

[Kosmos_]

Hi folks,
A while ago I had a worker apply some cement to some outside brick walls, inbetween the bricks, to fill up some holes/gaps.
Suffice to say, I was not happy with the job, as cement was applied to quite a few bricks as well.

I want to remove that excess cement from the bricks. I know a wire brush will definitely help. However, is there anything that will soften the cement to come off easily ? Since it's been a while, it might be a little tougher to remove now.

I've seen suggestions of warm water. But not sure how effective that will be. I know a scraper tool can also help, but it would be good to have something to soften the cement.

Thanks for any help
I

 

[longboy]

Muriatic acid (Spirits of Salt). Gotta use gloves though since it's an acid.

Buy it at any Builders/Big hardware outlet. It will soften the cement nicely.

 

[Jean Claude Vaaldamme]

Nope just use the wire brush, or a wire brush attachment on your grinder(and be careful)

 

[Hemi300c]

Mortar lift (used it some years ago on tiles)

 

[Kosmos_]

Many thanks for the responses.