Friday, March 16, 2007

How to repair a stucco wall



How to repair a stucco wall by Jakob Jelling

Due to its special characteristics, a stucco wall can be very tricky to be fixed. When trying to repair a whole in such kind of wall, there are some important guidelines that might be very helpful to have in mind in order to avoid ending up with a very noticeable and unwanted patch instead of a nicely blended solution.
If you are not really sure you can repair a stucco wall appropriately and the way it looks is very important to you, you should consult an expert. But, if you still want to repair it yourself, we can provide you with some useful tips to have into account. Our tips are mainly focused on how to repair a hole in a stucco wall, so if this is your case you might find the next guidelines helpful.
Before you start repairing your stucco wall, you should start by making sure there is not any loose material in the hole. You should blow out any material or dust there might be in it and use a chisel for help if it is needed. If you find wire mesh and it is damaged, at this point you should replace it or blend it over with new one.
Once you have made sure the hole is clean and there is not damaged wire mesh, it is time to apply a coat of stucco. You should apply a first coat of it to about 1/5 inch of the surface, making sure it is firm with the help of a putty knife. Once this step is completed, you should wait approximately 48 hours before continuing.
Once it's been 48 hours after the first coat of stucco was added, you can add a second one. This second coat should be applied to within approximately 1/8 inch of the surface, and following the same procedure as with the first one. Again, you should wait 48 hours to continue. After 48 hours, you will be ready to finish the work by applying a last coat of stucco, preferably using a mason's trowel. You should smooth it and give texture to it until it blends with the rest of the surface, and then make sure of not touching that spot again for at least 90 hours.
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