Is It Better to Repair or Fully Replace My Stucco?
Stucco provides a unique, textured appearance to the exterior of homes, which adds a lot of character and also some practical value to the home. It is fire- and mold-resistant, helps to soundproof buildings and is seamless. While there are fewer maintenance requirements for stucco than there are for other types of exterior finishes, you should keep in mind that there are still some processes you must follow to care for that stucco over time, especially if you notice it beginning to crack.
The temptation can be to just pull it down and start from scratch by completely replacing the stucco. But there are many circumstances in which it just makes more financial sense to repair the existing stucco. You can attempt to take this job on yourself, or you can hire a stucco contractor in Bluffton, SC to handle the job for you and get it done more efficiently and reliably.
What you should know about repairing stucco
If you already have plaster or stucco on the exterior walls of your home, you should know that it can be significantly more expensive to remove it entirely and start from scratch than to work with a professional stucco contractor to repair and refinish it. Plus, you can avoid making a big mess of your house by getting a professional involved right from the get-go.
The pros will come out to your property and perform a close inspection of the stucco. The first thing they’ll want to find out is how well the stucco on your walls is still attached to its lath (the wooden slats that keep it attached to the wall’s framework). This will help them determine if repair is truly an option or if the stucco needs to be entirely replaced. They’ll also want to get a sense of the surface quality of the stucco to determine the extent and type of repairs they’ll need to make.
Based on this inspection, the pros will be able to determine the best techniques to use to reattach the stucco layer to the lath, then repair the surface damage and repaint it to make sure the stucco looks like it’s brand new.
A big factor to look at is the size and shape of the cracks, as this will indicate the type of problem you’re facing. Minor stress cracks occasionally happen because of the natural expanding and contracting that happens through the seasons. These types of cracks can easily be filled with a strong mesh fabric that expands and contracts along with the wall. Larger cracks often run diagonally, and can indicate a surface pulling away from the lath. This can be fixed by installing a “plaster button,” a sort of washer that runs through the plaster to affix it to the lath.
The only situation in which stucco pros will really wash their hands of the job and suggest replacement is if there is significant crumbling of the surface.
For more information about repairing or replacing stucco, contact a stucco contractor in Bluffton, SC at Spring Construction.
Categorised in: Stucco Maintenance