EIFS installation & repair across MA & NH

EIFS is a layered cladding: a water-resistive barrier, foam insulation board, a mesh-reinforced base coat and a thin acrylic finish. Traditional stucco is a thick cement plaster, usually three coats over metal lath, with no insulation. The two can look alike, but EIFS insulates the wall, weighs far less and takes shapes and trim easily, while stucco is harder and more rigid. They fail in different ways, so they’re repaired differently. If you’re not sure which you have, send a few photos with your estimate request and we’ll tell you.

EIFS earned a bad reputation in the 1990s. Many homes were clad in barrier systems with no drainage behind the foam, and they trapped water at windows and rotted the sheathing. The industry and the building codes responded with drainage EIFS: a membrane behind the board and a path for water to escape. Installed to the manufacturer’s details, with proper flashing at windows, roof edges and decks, drainage EIFS is a sound wall. Most problems today trace back to missing flashing or failed sealant, not to the system itself.

With sound details and basic upkeep, decades. The wall assembly itself is durable; what wears out first is the sealant at windows, doors and penetrations, and the finish, which fades and collects dirt. Walls that get their joints renewed and a fresh coating when they start to look tired hold up far longer than walls left alone until a leak shows up inside. If you notice open joints, cracks from window corners or stains, have the wall looked at before the next winter rather than after it.

We don’t publish a per-square-foot figure, because it can mislead more than it helps. The price depends on wall area and how many openings break it up, the system and insulation thickness, trim and reveals, height and access, how much old cladding comes off, and the season. Send plans or elevations with dimensions and we’ll measure your actual walls from the drawings and send a free written price, usually within 48 hours. No drawings yet? It’s still free: we visit, measure and send the price after the visit.

Most damage can be repaired. Punctures, cracks, failed joints and small wet areas are cut out, the cause is fixed, and the layers are rebuilt, textured and coated to blend. Replacement makes sense when moisture damage is widespread, when an old barrier system leaks at opening after opening, or when you want to add insulation and correct the details in one go. We’ll tell you which side of that line your wall is on, and why, before you spend anything.

Warning signs include stains or streaks under windows, cracks running from window corners, soft or spongy spots, bulges, open sealant joints, and musty smells or peeling paint inside on exterior walls. None of these prove damage, and a clean-looking wall can still be wet behind. The reliable test is moisture probing by an independent EIFS inspector, who checks the likeliest leak points and maps the readings. We work from that report to plan and price the repairs.

Yes. After repairs and cleaning, EIFS can be re-coated to refresh the color or change it. The coating should be one the system’s manufacturer lists as compatible, typically a breathable acrylic finish or coating rather than a general house paint. Sealant joints are replaced in the same visit, since a fresh coat around failing joints doesn’t protect anything. A re-coat can also adjust the texture. If you’d like to preview a new color scheme first, we can produce a 3D rendering of the building.

We install complete drainage systems from Sto (StoTherm® ci) and Master Wall (Rollershield®). Every layer comes from the same manufacturer and goes on to that manufacturer’s published details for your substrate. If an architect has specified one of them, we build to the specification. If the choice is open, we’ll recommend a system based on the substrate, the design and the finish you want, and explain the reasoning in the estimate.