Stucco-Over-Wood
(Chimney "Box")
Tiny hairline cracks in stucco walls --
particularly at wood framed chimney "boxes" shown in
the photos above -- can create a serious and expensive defect
that remains hidden from homeowners and prospective buyers until
it's too late. If the stucco crack leakage is allowed to
continue without being sealed and repaired, underlying wooden
components (sheathing and structural framing members) hidden
behind the stucco will become water damaged and begin to rot due
to a wood destroying fungus ("wood rot") that quickly
decays the wood.
At first glance, the inside sheathing and
framing shown in the left-hand photo above appears to be rotting. We
can see the telltale dark-stained wood, as well as white powdery
efflorescence left behind by the water leakage into the chimney
"box."
However, upon closer inspection (CLICK
on image to zoom in), we see that termites have also infested the
decaying wood; a common occurrence as termites and other wood destroying
insects zero in on rotting wood as a source of food or to nest. The
result is a potentially expensive repair due the fact that all of the stucco
and wood sheathing will need to be removed to allow access to the damaged
structural components for removal.
As a result, the owner of the seven-year-old
home depicted in these photographs ultimately had to rebuild the entire
chimney after the old one was removed.
click on images above to
enlarge
The digital photo above was taken by a
Guardian® home inspector during a pre-purchase home
inspection.
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