Beneficial Qualities of Stucco Exteriors

There are many beneficial qualities of stucco that make it an exceptional material to use for the exterior of your home. It looks good, is safe and durable, and helps to insulate against both temperature and noise. A new stucco exterior is sure to make your home the envy of your neighbors, provide you with peace of mind, and save you money in the long run.

Aesthetic Appearance

The best thing about the appearance of stucco exteriors is that there are color and texture options for everyone. Stucco can be mixed with any color of your choosing to create the exterior of your dreams. However, the most common colors are white, earthy tans, and bright pastels. But colors aren’t the only customizable part of stucco exteriors. Textures can be just as important in creating your perfect look. There are many stucco textures out there, but the five primary categories they fall into are coarse, pebbled, smooth, raked, and swirled.

Safety and Durability

White stucco

Beyond its aesthetic appearance, new stucco exteriors are beneficial in a variety of other ways, perhaps most prominently, when it comes to the safety and durability sectors. Fire resistance is a good trait for any home exterior, especially when close to other buildings or trees from which fire could spread. A 1-inch thick layer of stucco can prevent fire from spreading to the other side for 1 hour. Not only will that help keep those inside safe, but it will keep the interior of your home relatively unharmed while the fire is being extinguished.

Beyond fire resistance, stucco also resists both the changing of the seasons and rot. New stucco installations are flexible and can resist the heating and cooling caused by the changing of the seasons throughout the year. Stucco achieves this by expanding and contracting based on the ambient temperatures so that cracks don’t form on the surface. As for rot resistance, a stucco exterior is installed properly with a weep screed, the moisture that can accumulate within the wall is able to flow out the bottom rather than become trapped. Further, air is able to get into the wall to dry out any remaining moisture. Thanks to both of these processes, internal rotting can be avoided.

The final durability benefit of stucco is that it requires minimal maintenance in order to keep looking like new. If your exterior has gotten dirty over months or years, power washing can clean it right up! And if any cracks develop over time, they can easily be filled in to restore the watertight seal.

Stucco Safety Hazard: Rot

Stucco Failure can Lead to Safety Hazards Unless Remediated

Older stucco that has failed can be made safe again through remediation.

Insulative Properties

Tan stucco

While older stucco doesn’t provide all that much in terms of insulation, the same isn’t true of new stucco installations. Modern stucco has additive materials mixed in, such as fiberglass, which helps to improve its insulative properties. How stucco is installed has also improved over time. Today, many layers of wall are present beneath the outer layer of stucco, including additional insulating foam. These improvements in insulation protect your home against both hot and cold air, meaning that the interior temperature is more consistent year-round. This, in turn, leads to less money being spent on both heating and cooling.

Sound insulation is an often overlooked beneficial quality of stucco as an exterior material. Stucco insulates against sound much better than some other common exterior options. This sound dampening works in both ways. First, sounds from inside the home are dampened. If you have ever lived in an area where houses are packed closely together, you may appreciate this quality more. Second, and far more important, is that sound from outside the home is dampened. This is excellent if your property lies on a busy road or near a school, park, or other popular public location.

Conclusion

Stucco is one of the most aesthetic home exterior options available thanks to the wide variety of colors and textures that are possible. With near-limitless colors and tens of textures to choose from, there truly is a stucco style for everyone. But while the majority of homeowners who choose stucco do so for its appearance, that isn’t the only thing this siding material has going for it. Modern stucco is one of the safest building materials on the market. It is also extremely durable when properly installed and easy to maintain when compared to other options. And finally, stucco provides excellent insulation, meaning you’ll be paying less for heating and cooling your home throughout the year.

Friel Exteriors

If you’re interested in learning more about the beneficial qualities of stucco, contact us today. At Friel Exteriors, our home siding experts can help you select the perfect stucco design for your home. We also have decades of experience in the proper installation of stucco systems, so you can rest assured that it will last well into the future.