Stucco repair. Lancaster P.A.

This Stucco repair job had a great deal of water damage. The wing wall extending from the front of the house had a down spout draining directly on to the top of the wall. The 4 inch caps that run the length of the top of the wall had developed cracks in the head joints. Once the cracks had formed that gave the water a way to penetrate the inside of the wall. When water has a way in that’s when problems start that will only get worse over time. So every time it would rain all the water collected from the roof would drench this wall.

This wall also had a type of masonry coating on it that is similar to paint that is designed for Stucco and concrete walls. It has aggregate in it so when it dries it looks like stucco. It also stays pliable when it dries and this can help with cracks. Finally it creates an impermeable barrier for water. This is great unless water has a way in. Once water has a way in rather than keeping the wall dry it can have the opposite affect. It will saturate the wall and prevent it from drying out essentially trapping the water in. Block are like a sponge they will absorbe water to the point that they are saturated. When they reach the point of complete saturation and are then exposed to years of freezing and thawing. This creates the conditions for the block to break down and basically crumble apart. That is what happend to this wall. As I was removing the stucco most of the block faces just split in half. However in some locations particularly where the water was penetrating the most, the block just disintegrated.

After the Stucco had been removed the first step was to replace the block that had completely broken down with new ones. Then the first 2 coats of Stucco were applied to get some strength back into the wall. Next the caps were removed and several block cores were grouted down to the footer. Then a bond beam was cut into the top course of block. After that the caps were relayed and the final coats of Stucco were applied. The last coat of Stucco was finished off with a wet brush. The wing wall in this photo is the grey color of cement right now. In the future he entire house will be “painted” with the masonry coating designed to mimic Stucco. This Stucco repair and wall restoration job is located in Lititz In Lancaster county P.A.

Stucco repair. Lancaster, PA.