Hi! Can anyone out there help me with my 2nd cladding enquiry please?
When I was on my Orlando (florida) holiday in 2007, I stayed at a Country Inn & Suites Hotel. The outside facarde of the hotel appeared to be clad in 8ft wide x 4ft high (approx) concrete panels, the panels gave the impression that the hotel walls were sturdy & substantial and they were covered in either stucco or coloured paint with agregates in it.
However! When I tapped the panels with my fingers, it sounded thin & hollow, and when I touched the panel with my hand, it felt warm (but not hot)in the midday sun.
It appeared to be made of plastic or some composite materials. I started to notice that most of the hotels in this area had them as facia cladding, so they are very common.
Can anyone please tell me what this product is called and the name of the manufacturer.
The product you have seen is called EIFS, or Exterior Insulating Finishing System.
It was developed by Sto Corp in Germany during the end of WW-2 It was a quick method of fixing buildings that suffered from damage due to shelling. Around the early 60's This product was brought into the US under the trade name Drivit. It made its first appearance in New England area. As it took hold in the building market many other companies began to develop their own system under many other names.
It is constructed using EPM, (styrofoam) These boards are of much better quality then that you see in home centers. This foam board is fastened to the wall surface over a vapor barrier such as tyvac with plastic washers and screws or directly applied using type II morter. This depends on the age of the system and the construction of the system. Most is applied now with the prior method of using a vapor barrier.
Once this is applied Type II cement with special materials which make the cement flexiable is then applied over a fiberglass mesh. This is called the Base coat. Once dry they then trowel over a finish coat. This has the color in it. This also has various stones, sand etc, which creates the texture you see.
This is a great product, providing its correctly installed. If not, it can allow water into the wall system and cause rot, decay and insects. Many insurance companies refuse to insure homes with this product. Several states have passed laws preventing this material from being applied on new homes. Although widely used in the commercial market, many homes have been constructed using this product.
You can find a host of information, most fiction, rather then fact on the web. There are many companies that claim to have the ability to install this product but have no real clue on what they are doing. I have been inspecting this stuff both on homes and commercial buildings and in our area (NJ)for over 20 years and I know of only a handfull of companies that understand the install of this and do it right. So if this is something you are thinking of on your home. Be sure to understand who you are working with. Most of these companies go out of business after one or two years due to law suites.
Posts: 1440 | Location: New Jersey | Registered: 31 January 2006
Thank you very much 'Home Care Club'. great reply!!
I think you are right! This product does sound complicated and I dont think it would suit homes with the very, very high rain fall, such as the area where I live. I will take heed of your warning and give this product 'a wide berth' as I am looking for a DIY solution and there are no suitable contractors in my area.
If you have the time, I would be very grateful to you if you also used your vast experience to have a look at my previous message below as I have still not found these exterior (faux stone) wall panels (seen on HGTV rain screen principles video).
I dont know if this is what you were talking about, but this is used for exterior or interior, and they will send you any stone or finish you want. Check it out StoneSheets
