The Lowcountry Guide To Stucco Repair Done Right
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For the last 15 years, Hilton Head residents in the community of Sun City have been wrestling with excessive moisture seeping beneath their homes’ exterior walls, causing costly home damage and sparking health concerns.
Black mold, wood rot, decay, and water damage have all been found behind improperly installed Stucco. If your stucco wall hasn’t been installed the right way, it will likely fail.
Most Sun City residents are very familiar with the class action lawsuit that settled on April 18, 2019 for just north of $43 million. Now that the lawsuit is over, many residents are focused on making the proper repairs to keep their homes safe, free of health hazards, and protected from further water damage.
Every Home Should Be Evaluated
Follow these 5 Steps:
- Do a visual spot check for damage
- Hire a good home inspection professional
- Hire a stucco professional with experience and positive referrals
- Demand a warranty for the work
- Don't wait. There are serious risks involved.
Contact the Lowcountry’s #1 Stucco Professional Now
“I’ve got this money. I’ve had this house checked twice, and I better have it checked again before I decide to take a vacation with this money. I may have to use it for the side of the house. Which is exactly what happened.”
Residents Are Taking Action
Photo: (Left) Connie Sehlinger, Sun City Resident and Homeowner, (Right) George Hutchinson, Owner Spring Construction
Once news of the original stucco delamination made its way through Sun City, residents like Connie Sehlinger began to assess the likelihood of serious issues with her own home. Connie took quick action in order to avoid a more expensive, and potentially dangerous problem.
After receiving a settlement from the lawsuit, Connie thought “I've got this money. I've had this house checked twice, and I better have it checked again before I decide to take a vacation with this money. I may have to use it for the side of the house. Which is exactly what happened.”
“It was my third inspection. On the first inspection there was no moisture. On the second inspection, which was probably done 3 years ago, there was some moisture noted, but not sufficient to do anything, just to watch. So this was my third inspection [and] with this one the read-outs were significantly high enough that it was recommended that before I get mold or before I get too much rot that I have it repaired.”
Connie knew that waiting to repair could lead to bigger problems.
“Some of my friend’s who’ve had this issue, they’ve actually had, not just the plywood removed, but some of the beams removed. So I thought it would be less expensive to get it [repaired] now. Plus if you sell a home here in Sun City, you better have an inspection by one of the home inspectors to check for moisture, because since we’ve had the lawsuit, everybody in the Lowcountry knows that Sun City has had a problem with their stucco.”
As the new wall was being finished, Connie was concerned that the crew might leave a mess, but as she told us “they cleaned up after themselves [real well].... They swept up and it was like they were never here.”
Spring Construction: The Lowcountry Stucco Experts
One of the area’s most accomplished stucco contractors, George Hutchinson, owner of Spring Construction has been working in the Lowcoutry for 15+ years.
Connie hired George and Spring Construction for several reasons, including his expertise, competence, ten-year transferrable warranty, referrals, and his polite and trustworthy demeanor. But, before George began working on Connie’s home, he thoroughly assessed Connie’s potential for water damage.
“Connie had an inspection report from a home inspector and it described moisture behind the stucco, under a couple windows on the right side of her house. So we went by that, but also the general condition of the stucco on the right side was not in good shape. I was able to point out a number of cracks, and webbing, and separation that she had on the right side, in addition to the moisture behind the wall,” said George.
It turned out that in this instance, there were multiple breach points.
Photo: Faulty Stucco Offers Moisture Many Entry Points
“One of the problems with stucco is that it tends to hide what the issues are behind it ... a lot of times you have to take the stucco off to find out exactly where the moisture is coming in. And [with Connie’s] house, although the moisture was concentrated under one or two windows, it had started from cracks and separation on the upper third part of the gabling on the right side of her house.”
George recommended a course of action that would leave Connie with a well-constructed new exterior wall, and little to worry about for the next decade.
“The repair recommendation was to remove the stucco from the entire right side of the house so that we could put it back up correctly, fix any wood that may be bad on that right side, and then put the stucco back correctly.” said George. “Then after that I can warranty the whole right side of her house for 10 years.”
“You have to do a whole section of the house, do it correctly. And then we offer you a 10 year warranty because you’re not going to have any more problems. And if you do, we come back and fix it immediately.”
George explained to Connie why repairing the entire side of the home—as opposed to patching—is really the only option. “If you repair only a small section, or where the most damage is, the problem is that within a year or two it can come back. Most of the damaged areas originate in a different portion of the wall, so if you only do a repair in one section, you’re not solving the problem of what’s causing the moisture behind the wall. You really have to do the whole side to make sure you get it all out.”
When repairing stucco, it’s crucial that a contractor with stucco expertise does it once, and does it right. Spring Construction has the experience and expertise to ensure the job is done right. With plenty of positive referrals, especially via community Facebook groups, Spring Construction may be the most positively reviewed siding company in all of the Lowcountry.
George also notes that, “My crew is very experienced. Very neat. We don’t cut any corners. We never do a job without pulling a permit. We don’t do any patches where the moisture can come back.”
As the new wall was being finished, Connie was concerned that the crew might leave a mess, but as she told us “they cleaned up after themselves.... They swept up and it was like they were never here.”
6 Questions to Ask A Qualified Stucco Contractor
• How do you plan to repair the wall differently than how it was originally installed?
• Should I just fix the area where moisture was found?
• How long have you been in business?
• Can you provide a minimum of 10 neighborhood references?
• Has your company name and phone number remained the same, as compared to when you first began in the business?
• Do you offer a warranty? If so, is it at least 10 years?
3 Signs Your Home Might Be At Risk
Visually examine the exterior of your home to be certain that your stucco wall has not been breached. Keep an eye out for any of the issues below. Call a home inspector now to have your home’s exterior evaluated.
Cracking At The Seams
Photo: Cracked Stucco Wall
Examine the seams of your stucco and look for cracking. If a business card can easily fit in the crack, then moisture can enter just as easily.
Visible Streaks And Staining
Photo: Exterior With Visible Water Damage
If the side of your home look streaky, stained or water-logged, you likely have a problem.
Horizontal or Vertical Cracking
Photo: Horizontal Cracking Caused By Moisture
Any cracking in the exterior walls likely means that moisture has set in beneath the wall’s interior.
Expect These 3 Things From Your Stucco Contractor
An Extended Warranty
Be sure to find a contractor who will do the job right the first time. If they don’t offer a warranty, ask why.
A competent and experienced contractor should be willing to guarantee their work for 10 years. The best contractors are confident in their work and will insure it for years to come.
“My crew is very experienced. Very neat. We don’t cut any corners. We never do a job without pulling a permit. We don’t do any patches where the moisture can come back.”
Multiple Referrals
Referrals are an excellent sign of quality workmanship and community confidence. Ask for several referrals and call as many as possible. Consider it a good sign if the contractor is willing and able to provide ten or more referrals.
The more referrals a contractor is willing to provide, the more satisfied the clientele.
Spring Construction and George provided Connie with 20+ positive referrals from other residents of Sun City, prior to repairing her home.
Thumbs Up From Knowledgable Friends
It’s important to ask around — ask your friends and neighbors for their opinion and experiences with damage and repair. Exterior repairs are expensive, and when you commit to fixing them you want to be sure it’s done once, and done the right way.
Before hiring Spring Construction, Connie sought the advice of her friend and neighbor who also happens to be a mechanical engineer.
“A friend of mine had George do the work on his home. And he is a mechanical engineer and knows a lot about building, construction, and... after talking to several people he decided that George was the most competent. ”
After meeting with George, reviewing Spring Construction’s exemplary work, and speaking with dozens of positive referrals, both Connie and her neighbor came to the conclusion that Spring Construction was the best company to do the repairs.
Connie’s final feedback on Spring Construction’s repair job, “Now I’m pleased… And it really didn’t take up much of my time at all.”
