[FrankL]

I am dealing with a office condo and the second floor is stucco. It was redone about 7 years ago. This is about when I a bought a space. They did wood, lath and stucco. It had been like a clatter board.

They painted it a dark brown. Well it gets east, south, north and west exposure but mainly e and w. This is a southern state so summer afternoons can get 95+. The sun is pounding the stucco.

The board deferred painting for these past 7 years. The property manager appears to be clueless regarding stucco plus he is expensive. I talked to a new mgmt company with a very good rep and they are almots half the price.

They told me the cracking in the stucco is going to be a problem. Sorry for the long lead in but here are my questions.

1. Some of the cracks have lighter coloration around them. Is that efforlecence from moisture getting in?
2. I assume moisture getting in those cracks is a bad thing for stucco. The mgmt company shurgged at the last yearly board meeting. They were deferring painting another year and I said maybe we should not ait due to cracks. The mgmt company shrugged - like beats me.
3. If the dark brown color a bad idea because of expansion and contraction? Heat in day and cool at night? I would think a lighter color would hold up better.
4. Is this negligence by the management company? They seem to have no clue or no concern about the stucco cracks.
5. I assume moisture is getting in those cracks due to efflorence. The end result is??? Wood rots? Lath rusts? Stucco breaks down?

Thanks for any help. I am no expert but I appear to have some common sense versus most of these people. Trying to have as much data when i call a meeting.

 

[stuart45]

One of the problems with cement/sand stucco compared to the old lime/sand stucco is that any moisture getting in cannot escape as the walls don't breathe like the old lime ones. Wood behind getting constantly damp is always a problem. Many surveyors here have turned away from cement/sand stucco in recent years because of these problems. There have been better ones developed in Germany which are now being used. These seem to be more flexible and don't seem to crack.

 

[Ron6519]

"I assume moisture is getting in those cracks due to efflorence..."
Efflorescence is when minerals are carried out of a masonary wall as moisture travels through it . Moisture doesn't get into a wall due to efflorescence. It's a normal process for the masonary to absorb and release moisture.
Water getting into cracks is another issue. The cracks will also allow a path for the moisture to get out, hence the mineral deposits along the crack line.
Ron