Stucco & Exterior Work in Long Beach
Stucco repair and replacement in Long Beach with zinc trim, sound sheathing and shear wall nailing checked behind the plaster. Aspenwell Construction.
Zinc casing beads and weep screeds are the trim metal a stucco wall hangs from at every edge and along its bottom line. Galvanized steel rusts where moisture sits, and the stain can bleed through a finish coat. Zinc resists that corrosion, which counts in a coastal city like Long Beach where salt air reaches walls. We choose the trim before the plaster, because once lath covers it nothing can be swapped without cutting the wall open.
The screed and the edges
The weep screed is the line where the wall drains. It sits above finished grade or paving with a clear gap, so soil and concrete cannot wick water into the plaster. The weather barrier laps over the screed flange so drips fall outside the wall. Corners and window edges take casing beads that stop the plaster in a clean line and give it a movement joint. Each piece is fastened through the lath into framing, and joints overlap so a crack has no easy place to start.
Sheathing in plain view
With the stucco off, the shear wall behind it is exposed. Where the sheathing is nailed too widely or lacks hold-downs, this is the easiest moment to correct it. The plans give the nail schedule, and the inspector checks it before lath hides it. Damaged sheathing is replaced, the weather barrier is lapped from bottom to top, and the 3 coats of plaster go on over it. Window and door corners get extra flashing before any plaster is mixed, and the final coat is matched to the walls that stay.
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Stucco & Exterior in Long Beach: questions
Hairline cracks are common. Diagonal cracks that run from a window or door corner, step across a wall or return after patching are the ones to watch, because they can mean the frame or foundation is moving. We cut a small window through the stucco to see the sheathing before deciding how far a repair reaches.
Usually weather barrier paper, metal lath and wood sheathing over the studs. Any layer can be wet or damaged without showing it outside. Once the plaster is off, we replace what is soft or stained and check how the sheathing is nailed before new lath goes up.
Yes, and it is a convenient time. With the sheathing exposed, added nailing, new panels and hold-downs go in directly. The engineer's plans set the pattern and the building department inspects it before the new barrier and lath cover it.
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Describe the house and what it needs. We look at the structure first and send the quote in writing.