Torent Large Cracks In Stucco Exterior
Repairing Hairline Cracks In Exterior Stucco The Various Fasteners Used For Stucco Stucco Repair, A Brief Overview About the author. Identifying Various Cracks.
Stucco is used as a decorative covering for walls and ceilings. It is sometimes used over concrete and wood to make the wall or ceiling visually attractive. Stucco is one of the strongest materials out there but, despite its strength, stucco can and does develop cracks and decompose over time. Cracks around the edges of doors, windows and other sensitive areas are especially common. Let’s take a look at some of the reasons why your stucco could be cracking. • 1.Incorrect Mix Stucco is made of water, a binder, and a construction aggregate. The most common type of stucco is cement plaster style stucco.
If the cement and the sand base are not mixed in correct proportions, the end result ends up being weak. With the rise and fall in temperature, the weak stucco will develop cracks and begin to peel off the wall and ceiling.
If the stucco on your wall has been applied in an even layer and you can’t find a problem with the application, the stucco has probably been mixed incorrectly. The old stucco may have to be peeled away and a new layer applied. • 2.Faulty Install It’s common to see small cracks in the surface of the stucco even if the stucco has been recently applied. But these cracks are sealed over as soon as the application is complete, usually by paint.
While this may alarm you, it’s actually not an indication of a faulty install. If the cracks are too large, however, you should be worried.
Also, if the paint starts to peel off early, it’s a sign of faulty install. • 4.High Winds Stucco that has been recently applied is vulnerable to cracking because of high winds.
High winds can suck away the moisture from the recently applied stucco. This causes the remaining stucco to shrink and develop small cracks, which can grow larger with time. This type of cracking is known as shrinkage cracking.
Stucco will also crack in extreme weather conditions. The strong winds will bring with them debris, like fallen branches, which can land against the stucco and cause it to crack. If the stucco is connected to a flexible joint, the winds will push the join inwards, which will exert pressure on the stucco and cause it to crack. High winds will also bring with them extreme moisture or heat, depending on local conditions. Stucco if exposed to either extreme will develop cracks and deteriorate over time. • 5.Seismic Movement It’s very difficult to protect your home walls from cracking during seismic movement, which can include earthquakes and seismic waves.
During a period of seismic activity, depending on the fault, the tension under the ground may pull the ground apart, squeeze it together and strike and slide away. In some cases, the ground may fold over. In extreme cases, the energy may transmit in the form of a seismic wave, which is wave of force that travels through the ground, or cause an earthquake.
If your house is built near a fault line or a place with a higher-than-normal level of seismic activity, the seismic movement will cause your house to move around. The shock will transmit through the walls and cause the stucco to crack. • 6.Man-Made Problems Stucco can also crack because of man-made problems. Cracking can occur because of loud planes flying by your house, explosions taking place nearby and large vehicles driving by your home.
Some planes are powerful enough to crack windows when they fly by, because of a phenomenon known as sonic resonance (sound waves). Loud explosions, apart from causing sound resonance, are also responsible for causing a shock to travel through the ground, which will cause your house to shake and stucco to crack. Powerful, heavy vehicles driving by your house can also transmit a shock through the ground. Other man-made problems include construction work going on near your house, excessive drilling and dropping of heavy loads nearby, among others. Stucco, if and with proper consideration for local conditions, will last for a lifetime.
When there are defining vertical and/or horizontal cracking occurring throughout the wall, then more than likely it is caused by the lath. Either the lath (the wire specifically) was not nailed or stapled off properly which is a more serious kind of cracking. Vista Aegean My Blackboard Spc. Because the wire is essentially loose in some spots, then it will actually have a higher potential for forming even more cracks as time goes on.
To correct the problem, the stucco has to be broken out and the lath has to be nailed off or replaced. Sometimes you will see a diagonal type pattern that will signify some other type of issue. Theses are usually in the general categories of seismic movements, house settling or shifting, etc. The ones that tend to develop around a door or window are the cause the framing in the door or window or due to vibrations in that particular area. Some are more serious than others, usually a good rule of thumb is the size and depth of the crack. If it is more than 1/8 of an inch wide, then it should be a bit higher on your priority list than smaller ones.