Tag Archives: synthetic stucco

Synthetic Stucco – Why Weeping Holes Are Important

Posted by Admin on September 5, 2011 None comments

Synthetic Stucco (actually known as EIFS) is a popular cladding among both commercial buildings and residential homes in Northern climates because of it’s superior ability to insulate a wall and manage moisture. The moisture management comes primarily from 2 important components of EIFS:

  1. The weather barrier (typically trowel-applied) that acts as a back-up defense against any incidental moisture that gets past the outer barrier
  2. The drainage cavity created by geometrically defined insulation (read: insulation with grooves in the back) and strategically placed adhesive

There are a number of important details that need to be paid attention to, to ensure the system performs optimally. It’s important to note that the drainage system will work even if the details are screwed up to some degree, just not optimally. What we’ll focus on here is the weeping holes though.

Stucco Weeping Holes

Stucco Weeping Holes on a commercial building

Weeping holes are simply gaps in the caulking that is installed at the base of an EIFS wall. The EIFS can terminate 8″ above grade (per building code requirements), above another material (such as brick or stone) or at the joint between floors. EIFS should be terminated with a flashing that is tied into the weather barrier with the use of an EIFS tape, so that water is diverted away from the wall, out onto the exterior surface. Caulking is then installed between the flashing and the EIFS termination (the underside of the EIFS), with weeping holes every 24″ (or per manufacturer specifications).

The caulking prevents excessive wind-driven rain, and/or insects from entering into the EIF system from the bottom. The weeping holes provide adequate area for air flow and drainage of incidental water, while being small enough to act as a deterrent to insects. There’s actually a study floating around somewhere that concludes that the ventilation within an EIFS wall is enough to create an inhospitable environment for bugs to nest.

The lack of weeping holes when caulking is present is strangely common – whether by fault of the EIFS contractor being improperly trained (or maliciously lazy – is that an oxymoron?), a site supervisor lacking the knowledge, or inadequate inspection from the manufacturer. An EIFS wall without adequate drainage from the bottom may suffer from:

  • Precipitate buildup at the caulking
  • Inadequate air-flow for ventilation

Both of which will generally shorten the life of the EIFS wall itself. Will a general contractor who is on the job to ‘get it done and move onto the next’ care? Not likely. The EIFS wall probably won’t fail within the GC’s liability/warranty period, and they probably have backlash against the installer or supplier of the EIFS system regardless. It’s more about ensuring that EIFS countinue to be seen as a reliable, effective cladding for the sake of the future of the industry.

Oh, and the person who ends up owning or using the building. They’re important too.

Stucco / EIFS Leaky Window Protection

Posted by Admin on February 27, 2010 None comments

Although Exterior Insulation Finish Systems (EIFS – Synthetic Stucco) has bared the brunt of the “leaky window” negative publicity, it is nevertheless a problem that affects all sidings. The problem lies primarily with poor practices regarding the sealing of window frames and tie-ins with the weather barrier.

Sto Corp (an EIFS manufacturer) has put out a document showing how their StoGuard® Tape can be used around any window to assist in this critical detail – with any siding. Following these procedures will help to ensure your home stays protected from moisture and the associated mould and rot issues.

View it at:

http://www.stocorp.com/index.php?/20090714420/Videos-training/sto-videos/menu-id-265.html

Oregon’s Ban of Barrier EIFS

Posted by Admin on December 8, 2009 None comments

This isn’t new (it’s from 2007), but it is the first I have heard of it. The state of Oregon has banned the use of (barrier) Exterior Insulation Finish Systems as a building cladding.

What I love is the fact that they SPECIFICALLY banned barrier EIFS, not dual-barrier/drainage. They even explain it a little bit in the notice, that it’s not all EIFS – just EIFS without drainage and a weather barrier. It’s refreshing to see something educated for a change, as opposed to just “EIFS is bad don’t use it”.

I have a new fondness for Oregon.

Source: http://www.cbs.state.or.us/bcd/whatsnew/barrier_notice.pdf

Apartment Building Stucco Renovation With Plaston

Posted by Admin on October 2, 2009 1 comments

Driving through Ottawa, I suddenly noticed a high rise apartment building that looked to be under construction. It had the green tarps up you see with stucco / masonry products and there was EIFS everywhere. My first thoughts were “oh no, another building from the 80′s that they are repairing because of faulty installation”. Then I realized it was being retrofitted with EIFS (Synthetic Stucco). It’s something that logically makes sense – decreased heating bills, lower client turnover, and the ability to increase rent (and MURB valuations are based on income). Though not visible from the photos, a sign at the top of the building read “Plaston”, so I thought, who better to give some insight into the project?

Apartment East Side Stucco Renovation - Covering

Apartment Stucco Renovation - East Side Covering

TSC: What’s the approximate square footage of the project?

Plaston: The approximate square footage of this project is 18 000 square feet.

TSC: The project looks almost finished, how long has it taken?

Plaston: The project took approximately six months to complete. The reason for the delay is due to the fact that the engineers wanted to completely strip off the old exterior façade (brick) They were looking for an exterior façade that not only had creative aesthetics but also moisture management and energy efficiency. The brick was not able to meet all these criteria. They found this through EIFS. The net time for the application of the Plaston EIF Drainscreen System was one month.

South Elevation of Plaston Stucco Renovation

Plaston Stucco Renovation- South Elevation

TSC: What were the client’s reasons for wanting to renovate with EIFS?

Plaston: In most high rise building projects such as this one, our clients are looking for energy efficiency, design flexibility, moisture management, aesthetics and maintenance free exterior facades. Plaston’s EIF Systems covers all five aspects. Our Plaston Drainscreen EIF System (CCMC 13232-R) guarantees a 100% water tight system.

TSC: Was there any difficulty in getting permits/approvals to re-clad the building with EIFS?

Plaston: Keller Engineering Associates Inc. is one of the most respected building envelope engineering firms in Canada. Teaming up with a well established engineering company allowed Plaston no difficulty in receiving permits/approvals to re-clad this project. Furthermore, the NRC’s CCMC evaluation report grants Plaston Municipal, Provincial and National approval in conjunction with its EIFS products on any type of building structure.

TSC: What is the approximate cost and how much money on labour/materials do you figure the apartment owner/architect saved by specifying Plaston’s mechanical-blueskin system over conventional EIFS?

Plaston: The approximate cost cannot be disclosed at this time, however the Plaston EIF Systems can save the applicator a minimum of 48 hours time per wall section compared to conventional cement based adhesive products. This can be advantageous to the applicator as well as the client: as we all know time is money.
The air/vapour barrier – Blue Skin or Soprema’s Sopraseal 1100T – is a peel and stick membrane. There is no curing time needed (compared to cement based liquid barriers) in order to mechanically fasten the Plaston vertically grooved Drainage Boards.
Plaston has solved the penetration problem with mechanical fasteners by introducing the air/vapour barrier peel and stick membrane. Once the mechanical fasteners enter the substrate, the air/vapour barrier automatically self seals around the fasteners, guaranteeing a 100% water tight EIFS. This meets all requirements introduced by the Ontario Architects Association Rain Penetration Control Practice Guide.
Since Plaston’s Drainage Insulation Boards are already vertically grooved, time is shifted from manually grooving the flat insulation boards with cement based adhesive products and notched trowels to completing other advanced aspects of the EIFS such as the Base Coat or Finish Coat.
Not only is Plaston’s EIF Systems less time consuming, they are also superior in quality. Plaston has created the most advanced EIFS products in the Canadian market that are guaranteed long lasting facades.
Comparing Plaston’s EIF Systems by price per square foot to the leading competition, our price is guaranteed to be lower.

TSC: Thank you very much for taking the time to respond. We look forward to seeing more projects from Plaston in the future.

Aurora Announces Additional $5,000 towards Eco Energy Audit Grant

Posted by Admin on March 30, 2009 1 comments

The city of Aurora, Ontario has announced a 2-year plan to gain an additional $5,000 towards renovating your home to be more environmentally friendly. The green home grant, among other things, includes rebates for insulating the exterior of your walls with styrofoam — exactly what EIFS (synthetic stucco) does! In order to qualify, you must first have an inspector come to do an energy audit on your home, which consists of taking “before” pictures, measuring air flow through your walls, and doing a physical walk-through of your home to inspect the walls, insulation and air-tightness. In total, home owners looking to “go green” may get up to $15,000 towards renovating their home to improve energy efficiency — essentially lowering their heating AND cooling bills and saving upwards of $2,000 per year.

Aside from the grant home owners receive from the government, and substantial reductions in heating bills, the home owners who take advantage of this program will experience an increase in their home value due to the ROI (return on investment) experienced from renovating and upgrading their home.

As an example, let’s say you put EIFS on a 1500 square foot bungalow. The wall surface may come to 1500 square feet, which would be approximately a $15,000 stucco job. Of that $15,000:

For a total of $16,700 returned to you for a $15,000 renovation, and $27,000 after 10 years (and it countinues to save and climb every year)!
By this point there’s no doubt you see the logic in doing “green” renovations. Among the renovations, EIFS (synthetic stucco) is the fore-runner in terms of actual dollars saved. Don’t waste time, contact us to get the exterior of your home renovated with EIFS.