Blistering repair · Phoenix, AZ
Blistering & Bubbling Stucco Repair
When the finish coat lifts off the wall in bubbles, something behind it is wet or was never bonded. We find which one, then rebuild the spot.
The problem
Push on a blister and it gives. That soft, hollow spot means the finish coat has let go of the layer under it and there's air or water in the gap.
Blisters spread. Water that's already behind the coat keeps working sideways, and one bubble the size of your palm becomes a whole section that sounds hollow when you tap it.
We cut the loose material back to where the wall is solid, deal with whatever soaked it, and rebuild the spot in coats. Patching over a blister just traps the problem under a new layer.
- Looks like
- Raised bubbles, soft spots, hollow sound when tapped
- Usual cause
- Trapped moisture or a coat applied over dust
- First step
- Sound the wall to map how far it goes
- Rebuild
- In coats, cured between layers
Our fix
How we deal with a blistered wall
- 01
Sound the whole elevation
We tap across the wall and listen. A hollow ring keeps going well past what your eye can see, and the repair has to cover all of it.
- 02
Cut back to solid
Every bit of lifted material comes off, cut to a clean square edge. A ragged edge shows through the patch later.
- 03
Find the water
If the wall is wet, something upstream is letting it in. A failed weep screed, a bad window seal, a sprinkler hitting the wall daily. We trace it before we close the hole.
- 04
Let it dry
New material over a wet substrate blisters again. We give the opening real drying time, which on a shaded north wall in winter can mean coming back another day.
- 05
Rebuild in coats
Base coat, cure, finish coat, texture match. Same layering as a new wall, just in a smaller footprint.
A blister is a symptom, not the problem
Two things lift a finish coat. Water pushing from behind, or a coat that never bonded because it went on over dust, over a dry substrate, or in 110 degree heat that flashed it off before it could grab.
The fix is different for each one, which is why we sound the wall and check for moisture before quoting. A bond failure is a surface job. A wet wall means finding the leak first, or you'll be looking at the same bubble next summer in the same place.
We'd rather tell you the honest scope on day one than patch a symptom and hand you a bill twice.
Other repairs
Seeing more than one of these?
Questions
What homeowners ask us
Send us a photo of the wall and we'll tell you what we're looking at before anyone drives out.
Tap it with your knuckle. A solid wall gives a dull thud. A blister rings hollow and often flexes a little under thumb pressure. If it sounds hollow across a wide area, call us before it opens up.
Full services
The bigger jobs behind this repair
Ready when you are
Let's finish your exterior right.
New custom build, a full re-stucco, or a repair that needs to disappear into the wall? Send your plans or your address and get a straight, no-pressure bid.
Family-owned · Licensed & insured · Arizona ROC #356836 · Serving all of Arizona