7 Signs You Need Stucco Repair Flower Mound, TX
Many homes and commercial buildings in Flower Mound, Texas, feature a stucco exterior. It's an excellent choice for an exterior siding material because it has so much going for it as a versatile, attractive, durable, fire-resistant, customizable, and budget-friendly option for protecting your home's exterior. But, like every other part of your property, it won't last forever without adequate care.
When their home desperately needs stucco repair, Flower Mound, TX homeowners will find that several possible factors may have caused the problem—but water incursion is the number one issue by far. Stucco is quite moisture-resistant, but once the water starts seeping in behind it, it doesn't stand a chance unless it gets timely intervention from an experienced handyman. If they've noticed some warning signs indicating your residential or commercial property needs stucco repair, Flower Mound, TX homeowners don't need to despair. Just rely on your expert, local Flower Mound handyman to get the job done right. The team at Mr. Handyman of Flower Mound, Lewisville and Denton is highly skilled and has decades of combined experience with repair and improvement trades, so we know how to take care of any stucco repair Flower Mound, TX residents may throw our way. We pride ourselves on the quality of our work and our commitment to outstanding results. So when you search for 'stucco repair near me,' just give us a call.
What Is Stucco Siding, and Why Do I Need Stucco Repair?
Flower Mound, TX residents have seen stucco many times on buildings in North Texas, including on their property, and could easily identify it by sight—but what is it, exactly? It's a cement-based exterior siding applied wet and hardened to a dense, textured finish. It is made from a mixture of Portland cement, sand, lime, and water and provides a seamless finish to any building.
Traditional stucco is applied in three coats over a layer of asphalt-infused paper and a layer of metal mesh that looks like chicken wire but is sturdier and comes in larger rolls. First, a scratch coat or base coat is applied over the wire mesh. That's followed by a brown coat (which is called that regardless of its color), applied with a long trowel to make sure it's evened out so you don't have globes hanging off your building. Lastly, a finish coat is applied. The final stucco application goes on with a trowel to help seal and waterproof it. It comes in a wide variety of textures and colors to suit your personal taste and boost curb appeal.
While this exterior finish is quite durable, there are still plenty of reasons for traditional or synthetic stucco repair. Flower Mound, TX stucco houses and buildings can see damage in the event of harsh storms, impact damage, or even settlement stress. Additionally, stucco has a lifespan of about 50 years, and as it ages, you may need the occasional fix to prevent the need for earlier replacement services. Ultimately, it's best to address issues early on with stucco repair. Flower Mound, TX homeowners will quickly discover that without it, they will face many costly problems rather than just an individual project to repair stucco damage.
But no matter what your repair may involve, you can rest assured that our handyman team has the knowledge and expertise to handle your home improvement projects and take great pride in providing long-lasting repairs for your home or business, whether it's vinyl siding replacement, acoustic ceiling removal, or stucco repair in Flower Mound, TX.
Signs You Need Stucco Siding Repair, Flower Mound, TX
Most homeowners don't circle their house regularly, examining every last bit of siding for the slightest sign of damage—which is perfectly understandable. However, when it comes to cement-based siding like stucco, any damage is often the result of moisture incursion. That can cause major problems for your house if it's left to fester for too long.
If they are aware of the signs that your property needs stucco repair, Flower Mound, TX property owners can call an experienced professional for a stucco inspection and to take care of the necessary repairs before it worsens, and their building suffers deeper problems that can affect structural stability or even pose a threat to the health of your household. Here are some of the major signs you need stucco repair.
1. Cracked Stucco
It's normal to have a few tiny hairline stucco cracks in your stucco, and it's not much of a cause for emergency stucco repair. Flower Mound, TX property owners should check up on areas with small cracks every now and then to make sure they haven't worsened, but these minor cracks are a cosmetic issue. However, widened cracks, or extensive hairline cracking, on the other hand, is a strong indication that you need stucco repair. Flower Mound, TX homeowners should be alarmed by large cracks over a quarter of an inch wide because they can indicate a serious structural problem.
Large cracks can be caused by a house shifting and settling over time, or they could be related to severe issues like a sinking foundation or too much weight on the roof. It's also possible that large cracks are caused by water damage, and if that's the case, there will likely be water stains around the edges of the cracks.
2. Crumbling
If you have sections of stucco that are badly cracked and chipped or even have loose pieces falling right off the wall, that's a big problem that needs to be addressed with stucco repair. Flower Mound, TX residents will find that crumbling, loose stucco can happen for a variety of reasons, including pest infestations, ground vibrations, settling, old age, and, of course, water damage. However, once it starts crumbling, the problem will worsen quickly because the damaged siding is letting in moisture that will cause even more severe damage.
3. Stains
When you notice unsightly stains on your exterior walls, you may be tempted to cover them up with a few dabs of paint—but there's no point in correcting the appearance of your walls with an exterior painting project if you don't address the underlying cause of the problem first because the damage will just occur all over again in a short period of time. If your stucco has developed some staining, it could be a sign of old age that indicates you need siding replacement. But if the stains are vertical black or rust-colored stripes, you likely don't have to look any further than your broken or overflowing rain gutters to find out why you are searching for 'stucco repair near me.'
Whatever the cause of the staining, it needs to be stopped before we can carry out stucco repair. Flower Mound, TX professionals on our team can complete repairs for stains with a layer of cement-based paint or even a new finish coat of stucco if the stains are widespread.
4. Dents or Softened Patches
Is there a stucco patch on your building that looks indented? We're not talking about chipping here—this would be a situation where the stucco appears intact but concave in certain places. If you touch the indented areas, they may feel soft, or you may notice a few soft spots that are not indented. This is a very serious problem that needs to be fixed as soon as possible because it indicates water pooling underneath the layers of stucco where the asphalt-infused paper and metal mesh layers are. There should be a moisture barrier, such as house wrap under the paper and mesh, but it can only hold water out for so long before the moisture starts seeping into the interior of your walls.
5. Interior Drywall, Floor and Home Moisture Damage
Speaking of moisture getting inside the walls, it's not uncommon for damage to go unnoticed long enough for interior water damage to show up inside your house when you need stucco repair. Flower Mound, TX homes with water damage can have other potential causes, such as a leaking roof, attic rain, or a hidden plumbing leak—but damaged siding is also a strong contender. Interior moisture damage can appear in several different ways, including:
- Interior wall and ceiling damage such as brown water stains and softened patches of drywall
- Rotting hardwood floorboards or wooden interior trim elements such as window frames, door jambs, crown molding, and baseboards
- Soggy patches of carpet or mysterious puddles on the floor
- Energy costs on your monthly utility bill have increased even though your active energy usage hasn't changed
These are not good things to happen inside your house, regardless of whether you need stucco repair. Flower Mound, TX services may be necessary to stop them, but you'll likely also need additional work done, such as drywall repair and replacement, flooring replacement or repair, wood rot repair, and possibly insulation replacement.
6. Plant Growth
When stucco develops a layer of organic growth such as algae or moss, it's an unattractive issue that can strike a blow to your property's curb appeal. However, that vegetation can also cause additional wear and tear damage that accelerates deterioration and needs to be addressed with prompt stucco repair. Flower Mound, TX homeowners with thesis type of stucco damage will find that it usually occurs near the bottom of exterior walls because when rainwater hits the ground hard during a storm, it bounces up and splashes on the bottom couple feet of the building exterior, creating the moisture-rich conditions that plants such as moss and algae require. It can also happen if you've got bushes and trees brushing their water-laden leaves against your siding.
Plant growth can typically be removed by the simple repair technique of giving it a gentle scrubbing with a solution of water, bleach, borax, and soap, but it makes sense also to consider measures that will reduce the amount of water getting on your siding, such as relocating bushes or trimming back tree branches, to prevent more extensive stucco repair in Flower Mound, TX.
7. Different Types of Stucco Impact Damage
Stucco is sturdy and durable, but it does have its limits. If someone kicks a soccer ball hard against your exterior wall, it gets scraped by a vehicle during a 20-point parking maneuver, hit by a falling tree branch, or dozens of other potential scenarios, it will suffer impact damage and need stucco repair.
Flower Mound, TX residents, however, who have suffered property damage from hail before know that an intense hail storm can create the worst possible type of impact damage. While each hail strike is relatively small—as long as we're not talking about that golf-ball-sized hail—the damage is often widespread across the entire wall or structure, and the impacts can cause further issues like chips and gouges, exposing the underlying layers to the outside elements in the middle of a harsh storm. In most cases of impact damage that requires stucco repair, Flower Mound, TX professionals can get it taken care of relatively easily with stucco remediation, but hail damage may call for more drastic measures like partial or full stucco replacement to address the damaged area.
The Reason You Need Handyman Services to Handle Stucco Repair Flower Mound, TX
After finding out more about the warning signs that indicate a building needs stucco repair, Flower Mound, TX residents often start to wonder what caused their stucco damage in the first place. Sometimes, it's just normal wear and tear that slowly accumulates over the years, or you may already know what caused an issue, such as impact damage because you watched it happen. But other times, it can be a lot more difficult to pinpoint the actual cause of the problem that prompts you to call for Flower Mound stucco repair.
We mentioned above that moisture seepage is among the most common and damaging problems your siding can encounter. If your stucco was installed not long ago and you're already noticing signs of trouble, the problem is likely related to an installation that was not carried out correctly.
Water Incursion
As you may have gathered based on the signs, you need stucco repair. Flower Mound, TX water damage is a big problem that causes extensive damage not only to the outside of your house but to the inside as well. But where is all that water coming from? In some instances of trouble such as moss and algae growth, it splashes up from the ground or drips off nearby plants. For overall damage such as water stains, softened, indented patches, cracks, loosened chunks, and more, one of the first places we'll look to determine the cause is your rain gutters.
Your gutters collect all the rainwater that falls on your roof and channel it safely into downspouts where it can be disposed of away from your house. If they're clogged with debris, broken or missing altogether, or if you have a clogged gutter downspout, all that rainwater drips down the exterior of your house instead and causes serious problems on its way down that can range from a leaky roof to a cracked foundation and affect everything else in between. With gutter cleaning and repair services, your Flower Mound handyman can help stop moisture damage problems and protect your house from further harm. We can also handle a replacement or brand-new gutter installation, helping to prevent the need for searches like 'stucco repair near me for moisture damage.'
Structural Issues
Besides water, another leading cause of stucco repair Flower Mound, TX residents may encounter has to do with the building's structure. Over time, the building's foundation can settle, resulting in issues like uneven floors or cracks in your ceiling, drywall, and stucco. Additionally, the clay-heavy soil in this region of Texas is prone to expanding and contracting, with seasonal changes causing soil movement and leading to foundations shifting and settling. Depending on how extensive the foundation issues are, you may need to broaden your search to 'foundation inspection and stucco repair near me' to deal with the underlying issues and prevent more extensive repairs.
Get Expert Stucco Repair Flower Mound, TX Deserves From Your Local Handyman
When you need stucco repair in Flower Mound, TX or a nearby part of the Dallas-Fort Worth area such as Argyle, Ponder, or Highland Village, you can rely on the team of highly rated local pros at Mr. Handyman of Flower Mound, Lewisville and Denton to deliver the highest standards of workmanship and customer care.
Skip the search for 'Flower Mound stucco repair near me': pick up the phone and contact us today to find out more or schedule an appointment.