THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, July 6, 1996 TAG: 9607040493
SECTION: REAL ESTATE WEEKLY PAGE: 02 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY CHRIS KIDDER SPECIAL TO REAL ESTATE WEEKLY
LENGTH: 192 lines
Troubles that have plagued the residential synthetic stucco industry in North Carolina are not going to be repeated in Virginia, say industry officials.
The Tidewater Builders Association and the EIFS (Exterior Insulation and Finish Systems that use synthetic stucco) Industry Manufacturers Association are rolling out a training program next month aimed at eliminating installation defects that have caused excessive moisture in thousands of homes.
The TBA program, developed by EIMA as a national model, will teach builders and EIFS distributors and installers proper building methods, materials and maintenance for new and existing homes sided with EIFS.
Building inspectors from Norfolk, Chesapeake, Virginia Beach, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Franklin and Southampton County are participating in the development and implementation of the program. All seven building inspection departments will require EIFS installers to complete TBA training, in addition to EIFS manufacturer training, and certify that their work meets specific standards.
The Virginia Beach building inspection department has already drafted an inspection form based on EIFS industry specifications, said Cheri Hainer, the city's building codes administrator. A form must be completed for each EIFS job before a certificate of occupancy is issued: One copy will be kept by the inspection department; one copy will be given to the homeowner.
Involving the homeowner is an integral part of TBA's program, said Albert ``Albie'' Viola, president of the 750-member builders association. Benign neglect of EIFS surfaces and joints by homeowners who believe EIFS to be maintenance free is a contributing factor in most documented cases of severe moisture damage; in many cases of minor moisture intrusion, it's the primary cause.
The cause of most moisture damage has been pinned on improper EIFS installation: inadequate or missing flashing and caulk are the major culprits. Those details, along with guidelines for choosing EIFS-compatible building components will be addressed by TBA and EIMA in their training program.
Most industry experts agree that EIFS performs well if properly detailed and maintained but the system is less forgiving than wood, vinyl or brick when it comes to installation. ``EIFS is a barrier system,'' explained one structural engineer familiar with EIFS problems. ``But it has to be a perfect barrier.''
Some experts feel systems with built-in drainage - currently used in some commercial applications and being adapted for residential construction - offer a better chance for avoiding moisture problems.
EIFS, a weather-resistant and highly insulative synthetic exterior finish, was developed in Europe after World War II. It appeared in the U.S. residential building market less than 20 years ago and is the fastest growing segment of the siding market. Because of its ease of application and flexibility, it is an attractive and competitively-priced alternative to traditional stucco.
While no official counts of EIFS-sided houses are available for the Tidewater area, Hainer said that her department has counted 60 builders who have used EIFS in Virginia Beach in the last 10 years.
According to industry officials, the explosive growth of product is the root of EIFS troubles. While most manufacturers trained distributors in proper EIFS installation methods, they relied on distributors to pass that training on to subcontractors and installation crews; in many cases, that wasn't happening.
``We were under the impression that the installers were all certified by the manufacturers,'' explained Hainer. ``But what we've found out is that only the companies were.''
EIFS critics point out the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) reported EIFS moisture problems in 1992 and the industry did nothing about it. EIMA counters that none of the reports suggested EIFS was defective, only that builders weren't installing it correctly. As long as reported problems seemed to be isolated incidents, no group took responsibility for making changes or educating contractors, building officials or homeowners about the potential problems.
The situation in Virginia Beach was typical for cities across the country: rumors circulated among building contractors and real estate agents about EIFS problems while building officials had little first-hand knowledge about what was happening. ``Until we did our own investigation and found some things, we really hadn't seen it,'' said Hainer.
It was the building inspection department in New Hanover County, N.C., that started what many industry officials might call the war on EIFS. The New Hanover County inspection department had been named in a homeowner lawsuit involving moisture damage to an EIFS-sided house.
Responding to the lawsuit and other complaints, J. Allen Golden, the department's assistant director, thought he saw a pattern. It wasn't just one bad builder or one bad product: EIFS, as a class of products, was inherently flawed. He tested 31 EIFS-sided houses and found elevated - and unacceptably high - levels of moisture in all but two.
When Golden took his findings to the local newspaper, building contractors, insurance agents, architects and engineers, attorneys, realty agents, lenders, EIFS manufacturers and distributors and the local home builders association all became targets for blame. The results were lawsuits, bankruptcies, aborted building projects and a real estate market glutted with EIFS houses that wouldn't sell.
Golden asked the North Carolina Building Code Council to ban the use of EIFS. Instead, the panel commissioned a study that generally backed up Golden's findings of moisture intrusion.
North Carolina officials didn't blame the product for the problems. They found that improper installation and the lack of prescriptive standards in the building code were contributing factors. They issued an advisory to state building inspection departments recommending caution in approving EIFS and leaving the door open for individual departments to temporarily ban the product; some - including Raleigh, the state capital - did.
``In North Carolina, it got to be an emotional issue,'' said Carlton ``Buck'' Buchanan, vice president of Sto Corp., one of the nation's largest EIFS manufacturers and president of EIMA. ``In Tidewater, we've been able to step back and say we've got builders who want to build with EIFS and homeowners who want it. What can we do to make this work?''
Everyone learned a lot from North Carolina, said Viola. ``The situation down there caught everyone off guard and the result was a lot of finger-pointing and not much positive action. We realized early on that cooperation and education were going to be the keys to heading off similar problems here.''
TBA's insistence on tackling EIFS head-on has been possible because the construction and real estate communities have developed a good working relationship with the region's building inspection departments, said Buchanan. ``I don't see this kind of rapport in other places.''
Building rapport between these groups will be necessary if EIMA wants to avoid more regulation of its products in other states. Problems with EIFS are not limited to North Carolina or the East Coast: The National Association of Home Builders Research Center HomeBase hot line has fielded thousands of calls concerning EIFS in the last year from homeowners and builder all over the country.
``This is a great opportunity to create a benchmark program and take it national,'' said Buchanan. ``We're talking about improving building practices in general. This is a step beyond what other building trades are doing.''
The training program is still under development but will be ready to go by August, said Douglas Mault, executive director of EIMA. ``A lot of effort is going into making sure it's done right. There will be separate, one-day programs for applicators, builders and building inspectors, each providing the same basic information but with a slightly different emphasis.''
Industry officials and builders are cautiously optimistic about what TBA can accomplish. ``Training and education are an on-going process, not an event,'' said Mault. Getting the word out, putting new methods into practice all takes time. Hainer sees the TBA program as a ``giant step'' in the right direction. ``TBA has taken the initiative and helped lay this all out,'' said Hainer.
While the builders association's primary focus is its members, TBA has made an effort to help consumers with EIFS problems as well. They've mediated disputes between homeowners and contractors, helped homeowners track down EIFS contractors, suppliers and locate qualified inspectors and engineers to do moisture testing and damage evaluations.
Viola said TBA is determined to be ``pro-active on this.''
``If there was one lesson to learn in North Carolina, it was that the person who got the short end of the stick was the consumer. That's not going to happen here,'' said Buchanan. MEMO: The facts about EIFS
What is EIFS?
EIFS (pronounced eef'-es) is the acronym for an exterior insulation
and finish system developed in Europe to refinish and insulate masonry
buildings. It was introduced to the U.S. commercial building market
around 1970 and has since been adapted for application on wood frame
structures.
There are more than 50 American manufacturers of EIFS products, but
just five - Sto, Drivit, Parex, Synergy and Finestone - produce nearly
90 percent of EIFS used in residential and commercial construction.
EIFS is a sandwich of fiberglass mesh, synthetic stucco (an acrylic
polymer mixed with Portland cement) and expanded polystyrene insulation
board fastened to plywood, OSB or gypsum sheathing.
The synthetic stucco finish coat is waterproof although industry
experts say it does allow limited evaporation of moisture vapor.
The trouble with EIFS:
Because EIFS is essentially waterproof, any building defect that
allows water into the exterior wall cavity is unacceptable. Wood and
brick construction are naturally porous and allow water to evaporate.
Vinyl siding - as well as brick - provide weep holes for water to drain.
Most residential EIFS products provide no means for trapped water to
escape.
EIFS on the outside of an exterior wall and vapor barriers on the
inside may form a watertight pocket the building's wood frame. That's
fine as long as there's no leak. But when moisture gets into the wall
pocket and exceed 31 percent, wood rots. Often, the waterproof barriers
do such a good job that there are few, if any, visible signs of trouble.
Studies of more than 300 EIFS-sided homes in North Carolina produced
unacceptably high moisture readings in at least one spot on almost every
house tested. The study blamed most moisture problems on improper
flashes, lack of proper caulk joints around windows and the use of
all-wood windows, which often leaked water even when properly installed.
Improperly flashed roofs and wall intersections caused some of the
most extensive - and expensive - EIFS damage. Other inadequately caulked
penetrations into EIFS walls (e.g., exterior light fixtures and hose
bibs) caused minor damage.
In many coastal states, homeowners' insurance policies specifically
exclude coverage for wet or dry rot making EIFS damage an uncovered
expense.
- Chris Kidder ILLUSTRATION: Color photo on cover by JIM WALKER, The
Virginian-Pilot
Left to right, city building officials Bob Smalley, Chesapeake;
Cheri Hainer, Virginia Beach; Bob Loher, Virginia Beach; Albie Viola
of the TBA; Gary Szymanski, Portsmouth, and Donald Goodwin,
Franklin. by CNB