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The home I recently purchased has a stucco finish (which is kind of unfortunate since it is an 1860 Italian ate home 🙁 ). The stucco was applied with a very rough texture (and quite sloppy as well). The stucco has been painted. O.K…. Here’s my questions:
1. Can I put a “skim coat” of more stucco on top of this stucco to create a smooth finish and provide some color? If o. to skim coat….
2. What preparation of the current stucco should be done?
3. I was going to install some “cast stone” acrhetectual details around windows and doors and quions…should this be done after applying a skim coat?
4. How difficult is this for a reasonably proficient DIY’er?
5. If I were going to replace all the windows, should the window replacement be done before or after the stucco application?
Thanks for your responses…
Patrick
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Patrick, before you consider all of this have you tried to find a period photo of your house, or similar houses of the period? Neighbors who might remember what it looked like? How about some professional advice? You may find suprises that (should) influence the rather major decisions that you are making.
Jeff
*Patrick,>>1. Can I put a "skim coat" of more stucco on top of this stucco to create a smooth finish and provide some color? If o. to skim coat.... <<I agree that Jeff's idea is a good way to arrive at a "look" for your place ... Assuming you're already settled on that issue, here is what I did to a friend's house about 11 years ago, and again to my own place about 9 years ago. Like yours, they had a heavy stucco texture which had been painted.I. Get the heaviest duty power washer you can and blast off all the paint you can.II. Get that plaster scraping tool which I can never remember the name of, due to serious CRS. It looks like this on the face: [///], sort of. Scrape like hell - a hard and noisy job.III. Wash the wall again. With a brush and roller, paint on some concrete bonding adhesive (the white glue). Mix up your new color coat, and trowel on the desired texture. They make finer aggregate mixes for smoother trowelled finishes.I've done this twice, and it held fine. Now, I'd probably sandblast, but 9 and 11 years ago it was cheaper for me to go the labor intensive route.>>2. What preparation of the current stucco should be done? <<Okay, I guess we covered that.>>3. I was going to install some "cast stone" acrhetectual details around windows and doors and quions...should this be done after applying a skim coat? <<Before - the color coat will hide the joints, and make it look more like an integral part of the structure.>>4. How difficult is this for a reasonably proficient DIY'er? <<Child's play. Okay, it's really back-breaking, bone-tiring work - but you can do this one. It should go w/out saying that you DO need to know some of the basics of plastering - and have the right tools and equipment. PLASTER trowels (NOT concrete trowels), a hawk, couple sizes of point trowels come in handy - and a gasoline engine plaster mixer. And a smallish mud box to use up on the staging you make yourself out of 2 x 3 sides w/ a 3/4" ply bottom - dimensioned at about 24"x18".>>5. If I were going to replace all the windows, should the window replacement be done before or after the stucco application? <<Again, before. Do your nasty prep work - then put in your stone details and new windows. Plaster after those details are in, obviously taking some precaution (masking or what you will) to protect those new, finsh surfaces. Approached thoughtfully, this will be a nice job for you of which you can be proud.P.S.: If over one story, hire some good plaster scaffolding (the 29" frame variety) and have it erected by a real erection contractor. Far safer and faster than working off ladders if you can afford it. Depending on job size, around here I pay from $6.00 to $10.00 a running foot for 29" scaffolding set at approx. 13'4" tall, complete w/ safety rails and w/ planks usually set at the upper AND mid levels. You want your staging roughly 6 to 7 feet below the top of your work, so your not crouching down at the upper portions of the work.Additionally, you can work more quickly this way and you are less likely to get any ugly lap marks as you move your piece-meal staging and things dry out on you.Finally, like anything else, start in an area where the results won't be as quickly visible, get a feel for the process, and then move out into the open where your work is going to be more widely seen.Have fun!Geo.
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The home I recently purchased has a stucco finish (which is kind of unfortunate since it is an 1860 Italian ate home :-( ). The stucco was applied with a very rough texture (and quite sloppy as well). The stucco has been painted. O.K.... Here's my questions:
1. Can I put a "skim coat" of more stucco on top of this stucco to create a smooth finish and provide some color? If o. to skim coat....
2. What preparation of the current stucco should be done?
3. I was going to install some "cast stone" acrhetectual details around windows and doors and quions...should this be done after applying a skim coat?
4. How difficult is this for a reasonably proficient DIY'er?
5. If I were going to replace all the windows, should the window replacement be done before or after the stucco application?
Thanks for your responses...
Patrick