Ask the Builder: Failed cement stucco: Why it happened, how to prevent it

The ramp was built with two poured concrete walls with the ramp in between them. The church is a stunning red-brick edifice built by French Catholics in the late 1800s. At that time, there were competing factions of Catholics in Laconia. It must have been like sports rivalries of today. Catholics from each country built their own church. Based on the churches that are still standing in Laconia, it’s obvious to me the French had more money and poured lots of it into this magnificent building I worship in each Sunday.

The contractor who built the ramp perhaps 20 or 30 years ago tried to make it match the original red brick. Rather than pigment the concrete (yes, you can add dry color pigments to concrete), he decided to hide the harsh gray cast concrete walls by applying a thin cement stucco to any exposed concrete.

Using the stucco was not a bad idea, and my guess is that it might have been a budget issue. The project architect or builder could have installed a matching brick veneer to the poured concrete for an even better look. They could have done exactly what the architect and builder did who created a stunning addition on the public library in the nearby town of Bristol. The builders there matched the red brick of the original library building perfectly. Only a trained eye can detect that part of the library building is an addition.