Stucco experts

[Just Primer]

I have a contracting license for painting, drywall, and stucco repair. I have done elastomeric Stucco paint coatings for 15 years. I live in the southwest, it was 70 today. I have patched and matched texture and even done some complete walls, and bagged color cote on a couple of complete houses. In the spring I have a job where I am going to re-stucco an entire house, starting from the tar paper up, wire, cement and cement based bagged stucco color cote.

Please don't try to talk me into the synthetic stucco, I hate that stuff, I only use it when I have to. I believe it to be a scam.

I would like to know any old school tricks (or new) to cure the cement slowly and strong. I plan on doing this in the spring, but here sometimes the spring is only a week long and then it's 90 degrees.

Is it a good idea to set up some king of misters or sprinklers on a couple of walls at a time, or am I just dreaming. I know to keep it moist for the first 48 hours and I know that wetting it good at least 3 times will help. I am going to use an additive. Keeping it moist for 48 hours is sometimes just not reality around here. Most of the time we have very little humidity.

I got this job based only on the fact that I have done work for them before and they trust me to do a quality job. I am not fast and I do not have a large crew. A regular stucco company could run circles around me. However in my area, there are not to many who care about what happens to the job after they get the check.

 

[Just Primer]

I should say that when synthetic stucco is done with the foam, adhesive and mesh, it does work. I was referring to the process used most often here, when chicken wire, real cement is used and then synthetic on top of that. They keep me in business, fixing the cracked up houses that are only 3 years old.

 

[Ross/Kzoo]

I would like to know what part of the country that you're talking about.

 

[Milton Shaw]

I would think that greenhouse type misters on a timer would be the best way to keep it moist for curing. That old cement based stucco will last forever if it is done right and on a solid backing. My parents house had it for over 60 years and never had any come off or de-laminate. My dad had a whitewash mix that he used about every 5 years or so to refresh the look. It was made with white lime, white portland cement and several other trace amounts of stuff. The brushes to paint it on with cost more than the whitewash itself did. He's been gone 5 years so I cannot get the exact formula.