[4luvofk9s]

Hi all,
We've finally made the decision to move from north of Orlando to Gainesville,FL. We are looking at homes and in the community of Haile Plantation we have the opportunity to buy quite a few homes, but they are Synthetic Stucco (EIFS) homes. I've done some research and seems there has been trouble in GA, VA, carolinas and some other states with moisture in these homes. Some info on the internet says that it is not necessarily the type of exterior walls that is the cause but shoddy building practices. I am also concerned about insurance. Isn't synthetic stucco extremely common in all of Florida? This is a well reputed builder in the area that no longer builds lower end homes but now builds higher end homes. If someone can provide some feedback on this I would greatly appreciate it. I will probably call around and ask insurance companies for their feedback as well.
Thanks in advance,

[Spree]

We are moving out of FL and have a relocation company handling our house sale. They sent out an inspector to see what kind of stucco we have on the house ... they would not represent us if our house had synthetic stucco. I had never heard of such thing but I guess it's a big deal with all the moisture in FL and might cause mold problems. You might be fine when you buy, but resale might be a problem. Definitely investigate.

[Prichard]

I don't like new, unproven building products. Having said that, you should kow that the biggest problem builders have had with exterior surfaces is absorbtion and transfer of water to the interior. Any concrete or concret like material will absorb water. The only protection from this is good quality stucco that is properly applied over the concrete and then a good quality paint over it. It is the paint that keeps out the water. It is the integrity of the stucco that keeps the paint from cracking, chipping and peeling.

[macguy]

Originally Posted by Prichard

I don't like new, unproven building products. Having said that, you should kow that the biggest problem builders have had with exterior surfaces is absorbtion and transfer of water to the interior. Any concrete or concret like material will absorb water. The only protection from this is good quality stucco that is properly applied over the concrete and then a good quality paint over it. It is the paint that keeps out the water. It is the integrity of the stucco that keeps the paint from cracking, chipping and peeling.

Years ago it was common to stucco right over wood making a wood home look like it was cement. The problem was the wood underneath can't breath and moister gets trapped. When you tear down one of the walls on these houses later there is nothing left but the egg shell like exterior, the entire frame has rotted away. Lots of mistakes are made in building that later look so obvious. I replaced a tub in a place that had completely rotted out underneath. The people assumed water had gotten underneath it some how but from looking how the rot took place you could see what had actually happened.

It was a cast iron tub and when you would run the water it created a tempterature difference between the inside and UN-coated underside of the tub. The tub would form condensation on the underside and it would run down rotting out the frame the tub sitting on over time. You would think the builder would know this, but they apparently didn't.

[Prichard]

Years ago it was common to stucco right over wood making a wood home look like it was cement.

Oh, ya!!! I don't think it was that long ago either - late 1980's? I recall a woodframe house built in the late '80's in Heathrow that was stucco over wood siding. The stucco went all the way below grade. Wood rot and termites destroyed everything, except for the stucco. I actually poked a finger right through the exterior of the house clear through to the insulation. "Eggshell" is a good way to describe what was left. What a mess.

[jhlcomp]

I would never buy a home with synthetic stucco. The other posters said it all for me.

Gainesville has a lot of different areas and construction, etc. Please continue to look and find better construction even if it means paying a little more.

[Prichard]

Well, let me clarify a few things. First, I don't know exactly what "synthetic" stucco is. I'm assuming it's some sort of polymer based stucco rather than cement based. That, in and of itself, isn't necessarily bad.

But, what's it being applied over? Wood? Concrete Block? That's the more important question. And, what is being applied over it? Good quality water proofing paint? Or cheap contractor grade paint. What the stucco is made out of should be the least of your concerns.

[Hondax]

Doesn't every home need to be inspected by state inspectors at certain stages in the build or remodel? Sub-par construction material and methods should be caught during inspection. The devils in the details I reckon.

[macguy]

Originally Posted by Hondax

Doesn't every home need to be inspected by state inspectors at certain stages in the build or remodel? Sub-par construction material and methods should be caught during inspection. The devils in the details I reckon.

I don't think inspectors would be involved in things like that. They don't care if you use 20 year shingles or 50 year shingles as long as the job is done right. A total piece of crap house can easily pass an inspection. The inspector doesn't care about the quality of the house as long as nothing was done wrong or illegal.

All new houses are built to code, the minimum requirements. A well built house will be built above code in every way but you won't find any builders building houses like that because it takes away from the bottom line. You have to contract and build the house yourself and do it as a cost plus job. The builder is not involved in selecting materials just doing the work the way they are being paid to do it. It puts nothing in their pocket to cut corners since they are only being paid for the labor.

[4luvofk9s]

Very interesting responses - and I thank you for all of them. This is a house that is synthetic stucco homes over wood frame. It was built in 1993. I called Florida Family insurance and they had no problem insuring us up there since we are not on the coast they didn't care whether we were moving into a hardcoat or synthetic stucco home, what was important to them was whether it was wood frame or brick. Anyways, I am going to check out a few inspectors that I know and get their take on it. I will also do more research. thanks so much!