Eagle-Based Company Enthusiastic About Simulated Stucco

Les Cullen says he has a solution to mold in stucco walls.

Cullen first made his mark in the construction industry in 1977 by inventing the fireplace insert and selling it through his Eagle- based company Fabco for 20 years. Now he thinks his new simulated stucco siding company in Meridian, CastleRock, has the next big thing for builders.

He holds up a square panel, about a foot square, with the gritty texture of stucco. Attached to the back is a high-density Styrofoam square of the same dimension, but offset so the top and left edges jut out a little over an inch, leaving a gap under the bottom and right edges of the stucco panel so it interlocks with panels placed below and beside it. The foam backing can simply be stapled to the wall, Cullen said.

A few years ago, Cullen bought a home in Meridian with exterior insulation finishing system stucco, or EIFS. "Shortly after buying, I realized the insurance rates were a bit higher," he said.

His insurance representative told him the company charges higher rates for homes with EIFS because a couple years ago many of those homes began having water intrusion problems. Water would get in through cracks in the surface of the EIFS, allowing mold to develop inside the walls.

Most builders have quit using EIFS and started using built-up stucco systems made from cement, wire lathe and tar paper, but builders told him it often has the same problems, Cullen said.

"I decided there had to be a better way to do stucco," he said.

Cullen determined that by creating a product with a siding-style lap joint, he could prevent water from getting into wall because water would have to get in the crack and then travel up and over the lip on the panel behind it to get into the wall.

He thought Styrofoam would be a good material because he had seen it used in the RV industry, and bought a Caldwell-based custom foam company in January 2006 to create the new stucco panels, which range in size up to 4 by 12 feet. The company also makes simulated brick and stone panels, columns, molding and trim.

CastleRock panels have been tested by Intertek Laboratories near Vancouver, B.C., Cullen said, and Treasure Valley architects and construction management companies who have seen the product have been enthusiastic.

The product has other advantages besides preventing water intrusion, Cullen said. It has a lifetime-limited warranty that includes cracking. It's less expensive than EIFS and less time- consuming to install. It's insulating, leading to energy efficiency and noise reduction.

It can be installed in below-freezing temperatures, unlike built- up stucco, and can be installed with an articulating arm and a basket or pre-applied to a tilt-up wall, minimizing the time or eliminating the need for contractors to block a lane of traffic, he said.

And if customers want, it can be coated with a hard resin that makes it tougher than masonry, he said.

"This material, if it's thick enough, can sustain a direct mortar hit," Cullen said, tapping a panel with a glossy coat. "This is the material they're putting on the bottoms of the Humvees in Iraq."

That could make it desirable for government buildings, especially schools, he said. "Kids are very destructive."

Cullen has patented his product and is still developing a local manufacturing model, but eventually hopes to expand CastleRock into an international company.

Credit: Lora Volkert

(Copyright 2007 Dolan Media Newswires)

(c) 2007 Idaho Business Review, The. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.