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Letter to the editor

Brick is an excellent surface to stucco

By Tim Carter, Special to the Times
Published October 27, 2007

A: Certainly it's doable. You need some skills and the right tools and equipment, as well as good hand-eye coordination to do the job well. These challenges are not insurmountable. You can rent the scaffolding and power mixer that will be required for the job. And you can hone your technique on a practice wall before trying to stucco your house.

Brick and concrete-block walls - even poured concrete walls - are excellent surfaces to stucco. It is a common practice to stucco exposed poured-concrete foundations to mask the irregularities created by the wood or metal forms. Stucco also does a splendid job of hiding mortar joints in concrete-block walls.

First, inspect your existing brick. It must be in good condition, clean and free of all dust. Now is the time to correct any water-infiltration issues in the brick, as well as any problems with the flashings above or below windows and doors. Many stucco manuals and guides show how to install flashings around windows and doors.

Applying stucco is almost always a two-step process. You typically apply a base or scratch coat that is approximately 3/8-inch thick. The stucco mixture is a combination of clean sand, masonry cement and Portland cement. Masonry cement is often a mixture of Portland cement and hydrated lime. A mix of one part Portland cement, one part masonry cement and eight parts clean, damp medium sand will create a splendid base stucco mix. The same proportions can be used for the finish coat of stucco.

Before you try applying the stucco to your home, I recommend that you practice first. It's important that you get comfortable with the tools and techniques of applying the stucco. You can do this by building an 8-by 8-foot-wide wall from 2 by 4s. Cover the studs with half-inch cement board. Be sure this temporary wall is secured well, so it doesn't tip over or get blown over by the wind.

Once you feel proficient, you may start on the walls of your house. Choose walls you rarely see or that can't be seen from the street. You want the most visible walls to be stuccoed last, after you have discovered how to do a great job. Don't worry about perfection when working with the base coat, since it will be covered with the finish coat. You want the base coat to be somewhat rough so the finish coat bites into it.

Before applying the base coat of stucco, mist the brick wall with a hose. The brick you cover with stucco should always be damp just before it is coated. Avoid working on hot, dry, windy days. The best conditions to apply stucco are overcast days with the temperature between 50 and 60 degrees.

One of the best aspects of stucco is the infinite variety of textures you can create. I don't know that there are any I would avoid, although I would try to do a texture that is a simple two-step process. When you apply the finish coat of stucco, try applying it in a random fashion and then overlap the different strokes slightly. The finish coat of stucco should not exceed 1/4 inch in thickness.

Experiment with different textures on the temporary wall where you learned to apply the base coat. Stand back from the wall 30 to 50 feet to see what it will look like from the street. Often stucco rookies think a texture looks great as they apply it, only to find that the relief and texture disappear when viewed from a distance. Look at the texture at different times of day, especially if you want a rough texture that creates shadows.

The biggest challenges of a do-it-yourself stucco job are mixing the stucco and getting it to the work location. To get professional results, the person applying the stucco needs to be fresh and concentrating on applying the material, not worn out from mixing and wheelbarrowing stucco mix around a job site. Work with a helper.

To ensure that color and texture match, purchase all materials for the job at the same time. Sand purchased from two suppliers can be very different in color and particle size. If you run out of sand partway through the job, you may not be able to get matching sand. This is not too critical with the base coat, but it is imperative you use the same sand on the finish coat.

Portland cement and masonry cement can also vary slightly in color. Buy enough material for the entire job and keep the cement in a garage where there is no risk of getting wet from the rain.

Tim Carter is a licensed contractor. To view previous columns or tap into his archive of information and sources of building materials, visit Ask the Builder at www.askthebuilder.com. You can write to Tim Carter at P.O. Box 36352, Cincinnati, OH 45236-0352.

[Last modified October 26, 2007, 11:40:11]