Argonne Road Renovation

A facade with history

The home on Argonne Road had been weathered for years — patches of failed acrylic coating, hairline cracks running across the south elevation, mineral staining where moisture had been trapped behind the finish. The owners had been told to demolish and start over. We thought the underlying masonry was sound and pitched a different approach.

The plan

Strip the failed coating back to the substrate. Repair structural cracks. Recoat with a breathable lime-based stucco system that would let the wall move without trapping moisture again.

Execution

• Mechanical removal of the old acrylic coating, by hand where the masonry was fragile
• Crack stitching and repointing with lime mortar matched to the original
• Two coats of lime-based stucco, integral pigment, hand-troweled to a soft, slightly textured finish

Result

The owners now have a facade that will continue working for the next several decades — and one that, importantly, can be repaired in place rather than torn off.