What are the facts about EIFS? 

EIFS or Exterior Insulation and Finish System became very popular in the late ’80s, and is still being used today as an exterior cladding material. The stucco system gave a house an elegant look with the added benefit of having extra insulation wrapping the home. However, due to installation issues and design flaws, problems arose.

EIFS stucco was originally designed to create a tight seal around the building. This is referred to as a “face-sealed” installation. It was designed to keep the temperature in, and the weather out.

As the product aged, however, people began to see cracking and wearing of the cladding. This presented areas where moisture could breach the sealed system and seep behind the stucco.

Because the product was designed to be fully sealed, once the water was in, it had nowhere to go. This is called having “no provision of drainage.” The water would sit behind the stucco and over time cause rotting of the walls and wood below, and also cause nasty mold issues between the materials.

This forced people with the issue to remove the siding from their houses and make major and costly repairs.

Most of the EIFS stucco installed today has a drainage system and is a high-quality product. Unfortunately, like many building practices, it took many years and millions of dollars for installers to figure out the right way to do things.

But that leaves hundreds of thousands of houses with older EIFS stucco built across the country with a large potential problem.

So… does the house you are buying/the house you own have EIFS? What type is it? Is there moisture behind the cladding? A home inspection will help you determine if your siding is EIFS, and if there is a problem that needs to be evaluated by an EIFS specialist.