Exterior Lime Stucco

Many historic stone houses were originally covered in stucco, also known as plaster or parging. This exterior plaster protected the masonry units and also kept the building less drafty. The lime stucco was then covered with a lime wash which further protected the plaster from deterioration.  This system allowed for very economical wall finishes because they were both durable and repairable.  Today, the fashion is to remove plaster from stone exteriors of historic buildings. 

Traditional lime plaster is long lasting, flexible, and vapor permeable, which are characteristics not inherent to cement plaster. Lime plaster is carbon neutral, has high alkalinity, and resists moss, mold and other growths that can be found in cement-based plaster. 

While we will remove old parging from your stone house and repoint the stone with lime, we can also repair parging. We regularly remove cement and synthetic stucco from historic homes which was applied improperly and which often causes mold development within the home.  Lime plaster is the solution in this situation.

Finishes:

• We offer a number of traditional finishes for exterior stucco including skip trowel and sanded finishes which highlight the beautiful natural movements of historic walls.

• We supply sample boards for color and finish with every project.

• Lime plaster can be natural or pigmented with an integrated color.

• Lime plaster is best treated with a lime wash or other natural totally vapor permeable shelter coating.

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Facade After

Facade Before

Historic Mill Before

Historic Mill After

Services:

• Preservation Works Ltd. specializes in the application of traditional lime plaster as an exterior stucco on historic and contemporary buildings.

• We stabilize and repair existing lime plaster using “like” materials.

• We remove improper modern cement mortars from historic buildings and replace with highly vapor permeable, natural lime stucco.

• We apply lime plaster to contemporary buildings and use post and beam or stick framing with metal lathe; masonry blocks, durasol and other block materials for support.

• We also do brick and stone, straw bale and other natural styles of building.
  

Benefits:

• Lime plaster is the traditional shelter coating for rubble stone homes and many barns.

• It is very durable and flexible and therefore, resists cracking.

• It is naturally repairable; cracks heal themselves.

• It  is highly vapor permeable allowing for water to be quickly wicked away, avoiding interior wall dampness and mold problems.

• It is highly alkaline and so it resists mold development.