Stucco wall, first introduced by the ancient Greeks and Romans, is still widely used throughout the building industry. Throughout history, stucco has been used in various styles, forms, and by many different cultures. Made from simple and relatively inexpensive materials, stucco walls are a great option for a beautiful yet subtle design for a residential or commercial application.
History of Stucco Fencing Walls
Ancient civilizations often used stucco for decorative walls and buildings with elaborate designs and artistic renderings. Though initially used to decorate the interior of buildings, stucco is also used as exterior plaster on outside walls.
Stucco wall has been popular in Spanish-style housing and is also becoming more popular in all types of construction because of the simple, yet appealing design. In the United States, stucco first began to be used in the early 1800’s. The original intent was to imitate the styles and design of European architecture and was used for residential and small commercial applications. Stucco wall became mainstreamed because of the many advantages it offered over common brick walls. Stucco walls were seen as being warmer and more inviting in addition to offering the builder more flexibility in the use of colors and designs. Most importantly, stucco can be made and applied at a lower cost than brick and stone.
Composition of Stucco Fence Walls
A stucco fence is usually constructed by using an already existing wall or structure made from concrete, wood or steel. There are two methods of constructing the stucco shell over the structural inner wall. The traditional method normally consisted of a tar paper with a chicken wire attached to the sheathing on the structural wall with the stucco applied directly thereafter. The stucco wall may be color dyed before the applying or the wall may be painted after. Originally made from a combination of water, lime, sand and other aggregates, stucco has advanced in composition to presently be made using similar materials with Portland cement. In more recent years synthetic stucco has become more popular in many applications due to efficiency and appearance, but extreme caution is required to ensure the installation is properly completed per manufacturer’s recommendations to prevent rot inside of the wall. Synthetic stucco fencing usually consists of using foam boards or cement panels over the structural wall with a synthetic mesh attached thereafter. Then a synthetic stucco coating or the scratch coat is applied. After the scratch coat is allowed to cure, a finish coat is applied with the desired color and texture. The greatest deterrent is that synthetic stucco is far less durable. Because of the lighter materials, synthetic stucco fences are much weaker and break more easily. Synthetic stucco walls are also more vulnerable to moisture problems such as rot and water damage.
Stucco Wall Alternatives
There are alternatives to stucco walls that maintain the same look and feel. One fairly new alternative is a precast concrete stucco fence wall using stucco textures and colors.
A precast concrete fence wall is a superior alternative to a stucco fence wall. Using concrete forming equipment and column forming, AFTEC offers a method of precasting a concrete fence wall that looks like traditional stucco, but substantially stronger, less susceptible to water damage and more durable than any stucco applications. Using steel-reinforced concrete and a unique textured concrete panel form liner system, AFTEC’s Precast Concrete Stucco Fence Walls offer both the beauty and appeal of stucco combined with stone, with the strength and durability of concrete and eliminates the hassle of concrete form rentals. |
