Stucco dating back to the greeks and romans is composed of portland cement sand and water.
Eifs siding vs stucco.
With a well trained eye one will be able to differentiate the two in a matter of minutes.
Stucco the original hard coated fine grained cement is sturdier and more durable than eifs also known as synthetic stucco.
Also called exterior insulation and finish system eifs synthetic stucco siding can be a terrific alternative but there are benefits to each.
Eifs is synthetic stucco siding.
More difficult to customize compared to traditional stucco.
Contractors found stucco to be a good repair choice for buildings damaged during the war.
Secondly it offers even more finish options than stucco.
Around the 1950s a synthetic stucco siding began to replace traditional stucco in some homes.
Pros and cons of eifs siding.
When considering synthetic stucco vs traditional stucco eifs siding has two advantages.
Stucco at roughly an inch thick offers an r value of about 20.
Without a trustworthy and experienced contractor on the team eifs is easy to mess up and that can result in a lack of water resistance and long term damages down the road.
The hollow sound indicates eifs due to the thinner base coat and insulation board while the solid sound can be attributed to the thicker solid stucco base coat and no insulation board caution pm eifs or hybrid stucco system can also produce a solid sound.
First it includes a layer of insulation.
Eifs is more costly than traditional stucco.
If conserving energy isn t benefit enough there s more.
Eifs is a relatively new cladding option that was introduced to the us in 1969.
However eifs depending on the thickness of the insulation board can offer an r value between 4 and 5 6.
Traditional stucco is not prone to the moisture problems discussed below.
You need to hire a professional contractor to install eifs.
Traditional stucco siding is made from portland cement sand lime and water.
Can t quite tell if the sound is hollow or solid.
Unlike traditional stucco eifs is applied in layers.
Eifs does not provide the same dual layer of protection against water damage as stucco.
After this a fiberglass mesh is applied and then a finishing coat.
Barrier eifs on the other hand uses a multi layer synthetic stucco that is much softer than traditional stucco.