Painting stucco exterior

[REWahoo]

OK all you [-]armchair[/-] experts, I need some "learinin' up" on how to maintain the stucco exterior on my house.

I have a 'real' (hardcoat), not synthetic (EIFS) stucco. It was coated with elastomeric paint when constructed in 1998 and the elastomeric coating has held up well over the past 15 years.

The problem I'm having is with an increasing number of lengthy hairline cracks. When the first showed up a few years after we moved in, I patched them over with stucco patching compound but the cracks reappeared and more have appeared over time - no doubt the window-rattling 2.5 Richter Scale blasts from the nearby quarries are a contributing factor. The cracks are very small, nothing wider than about 1/32 of an inch. I'm not worried about structural integrity but I am concerned about the possibility water damage over time (doesn't get cold enough here for freeze damage).

Now to my question: I've read a lot of pros and cons on the internet about using elastomeric paint on stucco. It seems to have worked well for us over the past 15 years and would seem to be the perfect solution to seal over the cracks and reduce the chance of them reappearing. Plus, I'm not sure what alternative I have since patching compound doesn't appear to last.

Anyone have experience with stucco maintenance?

 

[Dash man]

OK all you [-]armchair[/-] experts...
Anyone have experience with stucco maintenance?

Yes, and I resolved it by going to Angie's List, making a phone call and writing a check.

 

[REWahoo]

Yes, and I resolved it by going to Angie's List, making a phone call and writing a check.

That's the direction I'm heading, but wanted to know enough about the subject to at least be a little bit dangerous before making the call...

 

[JPatrick]

Send the bill to the quarry....Only half joking. During our time in north SA, we (subdivision) had some serious battles with the local quarry blasters.
They planted sensors in the yards of houses that alledged problems, but nothing really came of it, at least while I resided there.
Lots of people were convinced they had received damage from the blasting , but the connection was hard to develop.
That stucco problem isn't unusual, but watch out for the clowns with the pickup and a chauking gun. I think the key is to widen the crack before filling.

 

[REWahoo]

I think the key is to widen the crack before filling.

Uhhh...are we still talking about stucco here?

 

[Marita40]

I'm certainly not an expert but I owned a cute 100 year old stucco bungalow for 25 years. One of the first things I did when moving in was having it "re-dashed" to change the color. It covered all the cracks and lasted for the 25 years I was there--house looked great when I sold it! I don't really remember what "re-dashing" means, but I think it was a thick mixture of adherent (concrete? masonry?) to which some color was added. Certainly not just regular paint. Hope this helps! There's a lot of stucco houses around my area and a lot of companies that do this kind of thing.

 

[JPatrick]

Uhhh...are we still talking about stucco here?

Oh my..

 

[REWahoo]

Hope this helps! There's a lot of stucco houses around my area and a lot of companies that do this kind of thing.

Thanks.

I think the fact ours was originally covered with elastomeric paint may make recoating it prohibitively expensive. As I understand it, the old paint would have to be completely removed first and that would be a very labor intensive project - likely beyond my budget.

As mentioned earlier, I am looking on Angie's List for contractors experienced with stucco maintenance. Looks like there are several to choose from in the area, so my best bet is probably to talk with a few of them about my options.

The joys of home ownership...

 

[Marita40]

Yeah, as always with major home projects you'll probably know a lot more once you interview a few contractors. Good luck. I own a 100 year old frame house now that is going to need $$$ exterior painting soon. I miss my virtually maintenance-free stucco house!

 

[tfudtuckerpucker]

There's lots of good stuff via google

What Would Bob Do? Repairing Cracked Stucco
Repairing cracks in stucco
Care and Maintenance of your Stucco Home

 

[zinger1457]

Small hairline cracks in stucco are very common, especially in the south facing walls that get the most sun. Just had my stucco house painted 2 weeks ago. For the small hairline cracks they applied (by brush) some type of elastomer compound to the cracks, had a couple of larger cracks where the newer house addition met the older house and that required more effort, digging out the cracks and applying a caulking compound. Can't see any of the cracks now but time will tell how well it holds up. My neighbor used the same painters 5 years ago and it's still holding up so I assume they know what they're doing.

 

[REWahoo]

There's lots of good stuff via google

What Would Bob Do? Repairing Cracked Stucco
Repairing cracks in stucco
Care and Maintenance of your Stucco Home

Yes, I've seen these and dozens more.

Problem is, the advice your links offer along with the others I've read isn't consistent. For example, the first one above says to repair the cracks and then paint over them, while the third says never paint stucco. Frustrating.

 

[REWahoo]

Small hairline cracks in stucco are very common, especially in the south facing walls that get the most sun. Just had my stucco house painted 2 weeks ago. For the small hairline cracks they applied (by brush) some type of elastomer compound to the cracks...

This will probably be the way I'll go as all the cracks are of the hairline variety. What type of paint, regular house paint or an elastomer type?

I could do much of the work myself but I do not enjoy being on top of a long ladder. There are three exterior walls on the house where my 24 foot extension ladder won't reach, so I'm using that [-]and my age[/-] as an excuse to have it done by a pro.

 

[zinger1457]

This will probably be the way I'll go as all the cracks are of the hairline variety. What type of paint, regular house paint or an elastomer type?

They used a Sherwin Williams acrylic exterior paint, not elastomer. I also would have done it myself but for the high walls, the painters made easy work of it using power sprayers for most of it.

 

[tfudtuckerpucker]

Yes, I've seen these and dozens more.

Problem is, the advice your links offer along with the others I've read isn't consistent. For example, the first one above says to repair the cracks and then paint over them, while the third says never paint stucco. Frustrating.

You're correct- I also found contradicting advice out there.

If I had cracking problems, I would probably get several very experienced local contractors out to look at it, and give me a bid to fix it, preferably several who have been in business for many years and would guarantee their work for a reasonable amount of time. It appears stucco is affected by local humidity levels, and perhaps by local building standards and practices. I'll bet you're not the only house in your area with that problem.

 

[MichaelB]

We use acrylic latex, which works well here in South Fl but I have no idea if it is any different where the temperature drops. You do need to be careful, when we were renting here we used a power washer to get rid of some mold on one low-sun side of the house and took most of the paint off as well. We were excellent tenants so he didn't complain.

 

[ERD50]

...
I have a 'real' (hardcoat), not synthetic (EIFS) stucco. It was coated with elastomeric paint when constructed in 1998 and the elastomeric coating has held up well over the past 15 years. ...

I'm not even an armchair expert when it comes to stucco. I never heard of elastomeric paint, the elastomerics we used in the electronics industry were a type of rubber-like material, similar to latex or silicone.

But I think I'd try contacting the manufacturer of the elastomeric paint. I'd bet they'd have some good advice on re-coating. Some stiff will stick to itself (if you are lucky), other stuff needs to be stripped. This info might be on their website, or you might actually be able to talk to a 'product specialist'. Sounds like good stuff if it held up for 15 years.

If it's as 'rubbery' as I'm imagining, it might fill those kinds of cracks on its own?

-ERD50

 

[REWahoo]

If it's as 'rubbery' as I'm imagining, it might fill those kinds of cracks on its own?

It might have when it was newer, but not now. The coating is far less rubbery than it once was. I suspect the cracks have been there far longer than when they first showed up a few years ago as the paint stretched over to hide them.