Installing vinyl siding over stucco (1 or 2 coats) in gable ends to stop woodpeckers dammages.
Hello,
Woodpeckers are making a mess of my stucco up in the gable end (see picture) and I want to fix this permanently by installing vinyl siding over the stucco. I will get a cherrypicker to go up there, patch the holes with insulation foam spray and stucco patch. Then I would like to add vinyl siding over it, just in the gable end (I have seen it on other houses in town and it looks good enough). My question is about water infiltration if I nail the siding through the stucco all the way to the sheathing. I am worried about creating all these little holes. Should I install some sort of membrane on top of the stucco before nailing through it? Or is the siding doing a good enough job of keeping water away from the wall.
Any suggestions?
Thank you.
Louis
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Replies
I can’t tell much from the photos but it looks loke it maybe EIFS as opposed to real stucco.
There was a lot of very poorly install EIFS stucco lots of water got into lots of walls leading to lots of bug living in the wet walls. Wood pecker eat bugs they maybe telling you that there is a big problem with your walls.
I am not saying EIFS cant be install well and last a long time. A am saying that most installs are one failed caulking joint from mold, rot and termites keep your eyes open and fix the minor problems before they get out of control.
Covering it with vinyl is not a good plan in my opinion.
http://www.csinspection.com/eifs-dryvit/
Walta
Hi Walter,
Thanks for your input. You are right, this is EIFS. I understand your point and have suspected that woodpeckers were going for bugs as well, but I have access to the inner side of the sheathing in the attic and I don't see any water damage there. I have also seen woodpeckers hole at other locations and it seems like they peck it for fun really. The few holes to which I am able to have access are perfectly dry and clean inside, no water or bugs there.
I feel like removing this attractive surface from them will st0p the problem and this is why I want to install siding there.
Louis
Hi everyone,
I have not fixed this problem yet and would like to do it once and for all. If not vinyl, what other additional layer could work well on top of the EIFS to make sure that it is not accessible to woodpeckers once it is fixed and done.
My idea was to plug all the holes by
1) Blowing compressed air in it
2) Blowing spray foam in
3) Applying a layer of stucco repair patch concrete
Once this is done, I would like to put a new layer of siding over the entire gabble end to a) hide my poor finishing job and b) add an additional layer against woodpeckers (I don't want to go back up there). You may wonder why I don't hire a pro: I tried since before posting this last year and no-one cares for this kind of small tricky job it seems (didn't get a single quote after at least a dozen phone calls).
For the siding, my idea was vinyl but Walter seems to think that it is a bad idea. I must admit that I don't know how to install furring strips without creating a bunch of holes (securing the furring in the wall behind) in the EIFS and potentially make things worst.
The other idea would be an additional layer of concrete, but this space is very high and so I need to rent an expensive lift to go there. So the price and water access to keep the concrete wet over several days for curing is a bit of a deterrent for me right now.
Other ideas? If there was some sort of concrete that does not require wet curing, this could work.
Let me know how you would handle this.
Thanks
Louis
longfieldl,
My house is 100% EIFS based stucco over foam. There are flickers and woodpeckers here that favor the combo and I was thoroughly warned. The combo apparently sounds like a punky tree which is the preferred nesting site. I found that Parex 121 HI (impact) with standard fabric grade has kept them at bay. It is possible to get different meshes to use with the base coats but the thickness and expense of using them pushed me toward the Parex product. For the area in question, it may make sense to get a high grade mesh with the same fortified pre-mixed coating material currently used. Still leaves you with a color coat matching problem, but the vinyl siding would have also.
Another option might be to investigate aggregate finished panels like those used in commercial buildings. "Mobile home skirting" might be a search item to try for more accessible alternatives. Even if a special order item at the box stores the cost savings might be gained by moving the task to regular builders. The process would not be terribly different from putting up plywood like T-111.
I would hasten to add that you DO NOT want to consider t-111 if they are still not patching the cores thoroughly. In my former home region the material was used a lot and the nature of the material manufacture left "tunnels" accessible to lady bugs and the like. The woodpeckers would attempt to chase them for dinner with the result being holes like someone machine gunned the house.
You may actually be suffering from lady bugs attempting to over winter behind the foam layer. They are not very bright, but very determined to crawl behind things. I even had a wood pecker attack my asphalt shingle siding thanks to the little buggers crawling up behind them. Can't imagine what that tasted like. You will want to very carefully seal all edges of any sheet goods to put off there attempts to get behind it. Also, start checking the rest of the house for little entry points to head off the woodpeckers moving to the next food source.