Re: A 70 foot exterior stucco wall/ weather side of our house, we had our house restucco'd about 8 years ago. House was built in 1968 with NO plywood sheathing only horizontal wire backing every 6" then 3 layers of Grade D 60min building paper, insulation and lath, scratch, brown & finish, weep screed with one coat of latex paint. I Bought a moisture meter and the entire wall and i mean the entire wall is beeping detecting moisture. I'm certain there is no actual water intrusion as I put kleenex under baseboards during massive rain storms and no leakage detected at all and have gone under the crawl and it is dry with zero sign of leakage, however we are in CALIF and had El Nino storms all winter and the stucco absorbed water down to the water barrier (3 layers of Grade D 60 min building paper). It's only been a week since no rains and you can see the stucco trying to dry out. To further eliminate that it is an actual water leak (which is impossible for it to be everywhere even where no windows are located), i went up into the attic where the 3 layers of building paper are visible and ran the moisture meter over it with the SAME beeping results, yet no signs of leaks or even condensation are up there either. So it somewhat made me feel better that the wall is NOT actually leaking water into the cavity but the problems is the stucco has absorbed the massive rains down to the building paper and the building paper is penetrating moisture VAPORS through the building paper is what I'm detecting through the wallboard with the moisture meter. So is this a problem (remember this house has NO plywood sheathing only horizontal wire backing every 6")? All the other sides our our home don't register any moisture on the meter yet have the same stucco/building paper system but the difference is it that the wall in question is the strong weather side of the house that has driving force winds and is absorbing rain water and trying to dry out. BTW: the relative humidity in our house is completely normal even in a closet that's on that exterior wall (45%), so it's not affecting the inside of the home.:vs_worry:
STUCCO Moisture VAPOR!!
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How much moisture?
Do the windows have drip caps and flashing details? How about a picture of the wall.
The latex paint alone (assuming it was primed) is probably sub 3 perms.
Do the windows have drip caps and flashing details? How about a picture of the wall.
The latex paint alone (assuming it was primed) is probably sub 3 perms.
When this wall was restuccoed we had the contractor go over and beyond to flash the window, he used self-adhesive flashing sides/top/bottom not sure about the exact details but he laid something similar on the sill as I'm just a home owner. The vent in the attic that he flashed where I can see the building paper is not leaking at all and neither is the building paper itself up there in the attic, so i really don't think that below the attic that the building paper or window is leaking as I have found zero evidence of a trace of actual water (I put kleenex under the base boards during storms and they come out dry) so that's why i'm concluding the stucco absorbed rain down to the building paper but not through the building paper. I went out and bought a $40 pin-less moisture meter at hardware store that reads from 0-100%, it beeps when it detects 70-100%. The meter measures random everywhere on the entire wall 0-30 then all of a sudden 70-100 then back to 0-30 and back up to 70-100. This is the 'only' wall in the house that is registering with the moisture meter but it is also the only weather-side wall. The readings are lower after the wall cools down during the night. Remember I went in the attic and rubbed the moisture meter over the actual building paper that is visible up there with the same type of response as below over the wallboard.
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Stucco job was done right, in so cal it's usually 2 layers of building felt. It's old school when they wire every 6", but that's what you do if there is no shear panel plywood as is common in new homes. Stucco breathes. What most people do not realize is you do not paint stucco, as if you do you defeat the vapor transmission properties of a stucco job. Also you never has exterior grades ( be it concrete or any thing else ) covering the weep screed at the bottom. You do that and the moisture trapped in side will back up and go outward ( resulting in stucco color coat layer flaking ) either in the stucco or inside your walls (mold issues ). This is made worse if you paint the stucco. Refogging the color coat or re color coating does not lock in the moisture in the walls like painting does. I am not sure how long it takes for the moisture in a stucco wall after a good rain to vapor out, but as long as it can, it will.
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Take a close up of the window (I don't see a drip cap but I also don't think the window is the issue) as well as the area where the pavers meet the wall.
The bottom of the wall does not touch the pavers, the wall overhangs about 8 inches from the foundation, under the overhang is crawlspace ventilation screen the entire length of the wall (1968 type construction), the pavers butt up against the cement foundation not the stucco, stucco has weep screed. Hard to see in this picture because of shadows, zoom in.
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I'm hoping someone can HELP ME on this forum. I have more information: I had my insurance company send out a leak detection company who used an Infrared camera and he says that he doesn't believe the window is leaking. His moisture meter (as mine did) detected 70-100% moisture on the inside drywall evenly throughout the wall, but his infrared camera just didn't indicate that it was caused by a leak. He says that it could be condensation or vapor inside or just that this is the weather side of the wall that had lots of rain pushed into the stucco down the building paper and now that the sun is heating it up the wall is detecting moisture or vapor. He didn't have any other advice whether this was something that needed to be corrected nor did he even indicate whether this was damaging the inside of my wall so I'm at a standstill on what to do. He said considering the construction back in 1968 where no plywood sheathing was used only horizontal wire backing every 6" maybe that this is how that system works on an wall that gets extreme water and sun and maybe this is something that has been going on with that wall for 45years. It makes sense to me that the window isn't leaking since my carpet is bone dry and I even check the carpet during storms with high winds and no wet carpet. So what do i do about the high moisture reading in that wall from the moisture meter? how can I find out if actual condensation is in that wall or if the it's some kind of vapor or thermal reaction and if it's damaging to the inside of the wall or not? what type of professional would I call to get advice?
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With 70-100 % moisture of the interior drywall I would be expecting some rusty steel under the cover plates of switches and receptacles.
there is one receptacle on that wall and i removed it and it doesn't look rusty. Can someone please tell me what type of expert to call for wall cavity thermal/vapor/condensation that can help me out? I want to call someone who will be able to figure out why that wall is reading high moisture but not from a leak and what I can have done to fix the problem as soon as possible.
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Call an expert that doesn't own a moisture meter but has the knowledge and equipment to check material moisture by weight. I'm no expert but if I was close I'd do it for free.
when i look for an expert what KIND???? i need advice on WHO i should call next that is an expert with wall cavity thermal/vapor/condensation. I already had a leak detection expert with a infrared camera who only told me that the window is not leaking.
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I don't think you have a problem.
If your stucco does totally dry out....it's going to crack.
There are two kinds of stucco, stucco that is cracked and stucco that is going to crack.
As for that cracking at the base.....that is to be expected.
My house was built in the 50's. Back then they stuccoed all the way down to grade....and now weep screen. If you look at any houses now that were built back then, you can tell in an instant where the bottom plate is.....you will see the cracks and stucco below it crumbling. Because it was continuous, moisture would come down the wall and sit right there where the bottom plate sits on the stem wall.
As for the drip cap....you don't do that with stucco. Assuming they flashed it correctly, your building paper sits on top of the internal flashing. Any moisture hits the vinyl window and just goes down the side.
Here are a couple of pics of how mine was done.
If your stucco does totally dry out....it's going to crack.
There are two kinds of stucco, stucco that is cracked and stucco that is going to crack.
As for that cracking at the base.....that is to be expected.
My house was built in the 50's. Back then they stuccoed all the way down to grade....and now weep screen. If you look at any houses now that were built back then, you can tell in an instant where the bottom plate is.....you will see the cracks and stucco below it crumbling. Because it was continuous, moisture would come down the wall and sit right there where the bottom plate sits on the stem wall.
As for the drip cap....you don't do that with stucco. Assuming they flashed it correctly, your building paper sits on top of the internal flashing. Any moisture hits the vinyl window and just goes down the side.
Here are a couple of pics of how mine was done.
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So here is more to the story (but I've included all of it....): I have a 1968 stucco home. One long 70’ wall was restucco’d 10years ago, following the same old-school way it was originally done with NO plywood sheathing but instead a horizontal wire backing every 6”, then 2 layers of Grade D 60min building paper, then the lath, scratch, frown finish and weep screed. The old flimsy 1968 insulation was NOT replaced on MOST of the wall and is still within the wall in most areas, however one section of wall the insulation was replaced with a better R-rated fiberglass insulation around a window. This wall is the weather-wall that gets hit with wind-driven rain all winter here in Norther California. It is almost springtime after an El Nino rainy season, where the stucco absorbed a great deal of rain water down to the building paper and now the sun has been out for a few weeks and the stucco is trying to dry out. Because the assembly has no plywood sheathing I went into the attic where I can see the building paper, it is all in tact and not leaking. PROBLEM: I bought a moisture meter and the area with the new insulation I rubbed the moisture meter on the interior drywall and it has high moisture on the moisture meter 70-100%. I had a leak detection company come out also with a moisture meter and they get the same readings, high moisture 70-100% in that entire area, so they also used an infrared camera and it concluded the window was not leaking. So I’m assuming I have a thermal bridge thing happening here where condensation or vapor moisture is in that wall cavity producing the high moisture meter readings. What type of professional do I call to help me figure out the moisture problem in the wall cavity and how to correct it? Please any advice you can give me, I’m desperate as the leak detection company and my insurance said they had no clue who to call who are wall cavity moisture experts that don’t have to do with water leaks.
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I am not located in California, in fact, I am in a cold weather zone.
I'm wondering if there needs to be some ventilation on that wall.
I have used a drill to punch holes and add round, screened vents into walls top and bottom to allow the stud bays to "vent" to overcome a condensation issue. They were frame walls with wood siding. The paint would blister off due to condensation. The vents fixed it.
Perhaps this wall could be treated the same way???
I'm wondering if there needs to be some ventilation on that wall.
I have used a drill to punch holes and add round, screened vents into walls top and bottom to allow the stud bays to "vent" to overcome a condensation issue. They were frame walls with wood siding. The paint would blister off due to condensation. The vents fixed it.
Perhaps this wall could be treated the same way???
Don't know about so. cal., but around here, upstate NY, we have local companies that specialize in moisture intrusion - stucco remediation. (see link below) Maybe try googling a local company in your area, explain to them your situation and see if they can help.
Do to the heavy elnino driving rains you are currently experiencing, your insurance company may cover the repairs. Verify with them and your insurance policy. May save you some money.
Another possibility, google energy or insulation expert/specialist. Just a couple suggestions.
I really don't know who you should call, just a couple of suggestions. You would think your insurance company would know that. Hope you get it figured out soon glanz.
http://www.barrierexteriors.com/products-and-services/moisture-extrusion-restoration
Do to the heavy elnino driving rains you are currently experiencing, your insurance company may cover the repairs. Verify with them and your insurance policy. May save you some money.
Another possibility, google energy or insulation expert/specialist. Just a couple suggestions.
I really don't know who you should call, just a couple of suggestions. You would think your insurance company would know that. Hope you get it figured out soon glanz.
http://www.barrierexteriors.com/products-and-services/moisture-extrusion-restoration
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I think you are worrying about a problem you don't have. It's going to take a couple of months for the moisture content to drop.
And....those hold houses have NO insulation in the walls.
Click on the link in my signature and you will see some pics of my house when I opened up the walls. Same construction.
And....those hold houses have NO insulation in the walls.
Click on the link in my signature and you will see some pics of my house when I opened up the walls. Same construction.
Okay so here's a FINAL UPDATE: I had a serious problem and it was all caused by lots and lots of long hairline cracks in my stucco. Because that wall was the high wind-driven weather side, it would get slammed with rain and the rain would go through the hairline cracks down to the building paper and because my house was built without plywood sheathing so when the building paper got saturated the fiberglass insulation on the other side would soak up the moisture like a sponge. I didn't have ANY leaking windows it was all caused by the cracks in the stucco. Lesson to be learned here. I rebuilt the entire wall with LP Smart Siding instead of stucco, put on plywood sheathing with tyvek and a RAIN-SCREEN so this will never ever happen again. Thought you all would like to know the end of this story and what was causing the moisture/mildew in my wall cavity. NO dripping water in the wall cavity just moisture from the fiberglass insulation soaking up the moisture from the saturated building paper, caused the high moisture readings on the sheetrock and once opened mildew in the wall cavity. Interesting story and unfortunately costly for me.
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Great follow up and I am glad you got it figured out and fixed.
Any update pictures?
Any update pictures?
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