The Golden State: Where & How to Live, Secure, Visit, Enjoy and Thrive in California

First Aid For The Ailing Houses

Magnesite Stucco In the past, considerable use was made of a stucco based on magnesite, a natural form of magnesium. It had the advantage of great hardness, but in a term of 10 years or so was found to have a corrosive effect on metal lath. This in time will destroy lath, and the stucco, being left without support, will bulge and fall. Another form of failure is the appearance of soft and powdery areas from which the material will wash in a rain. When stucco is found to be bulging and cracking and is no longer firm, this trouble may be suspected, and a hole should be broken through to learn the condition of the lath. If this is found to have rusted away, the entire stucco will eventually fail. There is no remedy for this; the stucco must be removed and replaced.

Two methods are possible, preference being given to the tearing off of the old stucco and replacement over new metal lath. The other method, which should be cheaper, is to apply new metal lath over the old stucco, nailing through to the frame beneath with long nails. This will make the walls more heat-resistant through double thickness, but may make difficulty in building out the window openings for the increased depth.

Waterproofing Stucco There are on the market a number of waterproofing compounds for stucco, both clear and colored. A paint store or a dealer in mason materials can supply them. Stucco paints can be had, specially adapted to the needs, and with proper care house paint can also be used (see section on Painting Concrete).

leading Wall When there is leakage through a masonry wall, one of the most usual causes is open joints around the window frames (see section on Windows).

Another common point of leakage is at the top of a wall, either where it meets the roof or at the shingled end of a gable. Water entering at these points will work down inside the wall and may show at any point below on an inside surface. All joints and openings at the top of the masonry should be closed with caulking compound or something similar; for example, tow or other fiber, smeared with white lead.

With a flat roof, leakage can be through the flashings between the roofing and the side walls or through joints between the sections of coping on the top of the wall. Water entering a brick wall at its top can show itself at any point below; for instance, in a three-story house, in the second- or first-story ceiling.