Elastomeric is the best, however, there are all grades of it. Some of it is so thick, it requires a special sprayer, or it will burn out the sprayer. If you do it in elastomeric, do your homework. If you do it right, you shouldn't have to touch it for a long time. If you don't ................. It's not your Daddy's paint.
Elastomeric painting of stucco can seal it, keeping moisture out of it, which then keeps the freeze/thaw or wet/dry cycles down, and extends the life of the stucco.
Our Florida condo, stucco/concrete block, was painted by a contractor. The previous paint job was done by unskilled idiot - wasn't pressure washed, full of mildew that cause the paint to peel. 40 y/o building, so numerous hairline cracks. After pressure washing, the contractor used a brushable caulk which, IIRC, was clear or translucent. They did a perfect job, with no peeling after 9 years. We had previously gotten a bid for $27K for elastomeric paint, two coats. With only 8 units, that was pretty high. The contractor we hired, for under $7K, rec. primer and two coats of paint, but condo board opted for one coat. Everyone I know of who painted stucco/cb in Florida used semi-gloss latex/acryllic. Semi so it doesn't hold soil/mildew as readily.
Pressure wash it. With some chlorine - to kill mold - added.
Fix anything that needs fixing. Hairline cracks will fill nicely with painter's caulk (acrylic caulk) just smeared on and in with a finger. Bigger cracks need something better - urethane caulk is good but harder to use.
Paint with a good grade acrylic latex; I like semi-gloss. Don't paint in the direct sun; i.e., if an area is going to be in sun later, paint it when the sun isn't hitting it so it can dry first. If you roll, back roll in all durections - updown...sideside...NESW...NWSE - to get as many as possible of the stucco nooks and crannies.
stucco must breath or moisture pushing through can damage it. I am where it gets to -20 , in winter moisture from the inside absorbes into the stuccom if its sealed and not breathable thats bad, and any leak from cracks wont allow it to dry as designed. Regular latex house paint breathes. Of course new stucco is best but to seal it tight I think is inviting big problems 10-20-30 yrs down the road.
Folks in AZ and NV don't have a big problem with moisture, but even there it's not a good idea as houses breath. The OP was posting from Florida which is a whole 'nuther story.
Painting stucco may be a bad idea in some climates, but certainly not in Florida. There is no unpainted stucco in Florida, and residential construction is almost entirely concrete block and stucco. Unpainted stucco in Florida would take about five minutes to start growing mildew/mold. After the last near miss with hurricanes where I lived, one report on damage to homes included the finding that older homes had less damage than newer ones because they had more coats of paint - wind-driven rain goes THROUGH concrete block. It is also recommended to use water-based paint so that the masonry "breathes"; oil-based paint blisters because it doesn't allow the moisture to exit. All masonry has some moisture.
Unpainted stucco does not mean uncolored stucco and the structure underneath the stucco (block, poured concrete, stud frame) makes no difference. While some paints are mold resistant, using paint as a primary means of mold control is not an accepted building practice anywhere that I'm aware of.
Special rules don't apply in Florida for stucco. Here's one link I found in about 30 seconds for a stucco supplier:
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Note that they talk about a non-paintable color finish that is weather resistant.
I'm not surprised. Note that that same water resistance to water entering the stucco from rain also applies to water leaving the stucco. That's the issue. You want water to migrate out of the stucco or you will have mold and other problems.
If external water (ie driven rain) is reaching the block, your house isn't built properly. There should be a water barrier (like tarpaper, tyvek, but not poly film) between the block and the stucco.
That's true, but has nothing to do with painting stucco.
Poor Florida homeowners...100s of 1000s of them, doomed to paint failure - and maybe perdition too - just because their stuccoed houses have been painted.
It isn't a rule, but there is stuff about Florida that everyone seems to know as soon as they move down .. trim trees away from roof line and pick up dropped citrus or you'll have rats. Keep bread and cake in the fridge or you'll have ants in the kitchen. Everyone gets termites, sooner or later. Flora-Tam is the best St. Augustine grass. Builders use concrete block/stucco, period. Parts of structures that don't get much sun get a lot of mold, so semi-gloss paint will help shed whatever mold grows on or eats.
Advertising claims prove nothing, other than the well-known fact that Florida is full of sheisters.
Well, water entering in 100 mph wind is rather different than normal migration of moisture from masonry.
Not built properly? It didn't blow down and the roof stayed on. Proof it was built well enough :o)
Wellllll...if I use water-based paint on stucco, as do all of my friends and neighbors, I guess it DOES have something to do with painting stucco. I suspect that stick-built homes with lath and stucco have different requirements.
As others have said elastrometric stucco paint but the best paint in the world isnt going to do any good if the previous layers were less than what you are appling now. As with most paint jobs preparation is everything.. A good paint store is going to be the best source of info. Local climate is also going to effect your paint selection here again yourr local paint store is going to have the best info.
I've got a stucco arch on my porch in need of "painting". Fog coating seems to be cement slurry without sand.
I'm thinking now of just rolling on thin stucco patch with some white concrete pigment, if it needs it. It all needs done so there is nothing to match. Does that seem workable?
shawnbennett wrote: DO NOT PAINT YOUR STUCCO!! You may as well wrap your house in plastic wrap, it will not breath and you WILL get mold. Stucco should never be painted. If you want the cracks fixed and maybe a updated texture, then a restucco is what you need. Depending on the stucco , you can fog coat it. But if you like painting every 3 years , go ahead and paint but you will be cleaning mold off of your window sills and the mold will strt to grow in the stucco along the bottom of the wall because there is no where for the humidity to go. Call 3 or 4 stucco contractors and you will see that generally a restucco is 25% cheaper than paint and if its done right , it should last you a lifetime.
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