I have a 2-year-old guesthouse, covered in stucco, which has never
been painted (Southern AZ). I'm going to be painting it this fall, and
I'm seeking advice as to the extent to which it needs to be power-washed prior to
cleaning. The overall house looks pretty clean, although the 2 feet
or so right above above ground shows mild staining.

TIA --

Andy Barss

I have a 2-year-old guesthouse, covered in stucco, which has never
been painted (Southern AZ). I'm going to be painting it this fall, and
I'm seeking advice as to the extent to which it needs to be power-washed
prior to
cleaning.

Since its just a guest house (smaller), I'd P/W it just to make sure I had a
nice clean base for the paint.
When we lived in TUS, we got our paint from KM Universal at 29th and Palo
Verde? or maybe Alvernon.
I think their name now may be Kelly-Moore.

The specs on their stucco paint contained more of the acrylic than the stuff
from the other dealers like Sherwin Williams, Dunn Edwards and HD.
Five years later, it showed no fading, quite impressive in the S/AZ sun.
We also used a product from them called 'stucco seal' as a primer coat.

R

My understanding is that using normal paint turns low maintenance stucco
into a high maintenance painted surface. Also here (in Minnesota) some
paints can seal the stucco so water vapor can't pass out through it.
That can cause the metal lath to rust out. I was told (years ago) to use
a paint that was essentially pigmented masonry cement. "Redashing" the
stucco applies a new thin surface to the stucco which may include
changing the 'texture' of the surface.

Bud--


Andrew Barss wrote:
I have a 2-year-old guesthouse, covered in stucco, which has never
been painted (Southern AZ). I'm going to be painting it this fall, and
I'm seeking advice as to the extent to which it needs to be power-washed prior to
cleaning. The overall house looks pretty clean, although the 2 feet
or so right above above ground shows mild staining.

TIA --

Andy Barss