EIFS (Dryvit) Class Action Lawsuit

[Neil (Texas)]

http://eifslawfirm.com/

One of our colleagues sent me a copy of an ad that appeared in today's Dallas Morning News.

The heading read:

"URGENT NOTICE
ATTENTION
Dryvit Homeowners"

The body of the ad included:

"...
This Court finds that the Outsulation system would be defective if installed completely according to Dryvit's specification, details, and instructions due to it failure to accommodate inevitable and foreseeable water intrusion... the patented Outsulation "system" consisting of a method of application and the component parts, is intrinsically defective and thus is not merchantable.

Norfolk Circuit Judge Joseph A. Leafe,
Board of Directors of the Bay Point Condominium Association Inc, et al v. RMI, Corp. et al"

The above link takes you to the law firm's website.

Appraisers need to know the diference between EIFS and Stucco, not only for the property being appraised but the "comparables" being used.
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[Pamela Crowley (Florida)]

Thanks Neil. This whole stucco thing makes me very nervous.

 

[David S. Roberson]

Neil;

How do you tell the difference? I don't believe I've seen any in my market.

 

[Mountain Man]

Started seeing problems and lawsuits with EIFS somewhere about the early 90's in my neck of the woods. The problem was determined to be mostly in the area of windows, doors, and chimneys where moisture could seep in around the edges, but was unable to drain out, and rot out the whole wall. EIFS is impervious, unlike real stucco or brick, so the Home Builders Association published a memorandum for correcting the problem. Their correction is to install little plastic drainage thingees, and hold classes on proper installation. I guess the drains work, haven’t seen too much in the local news lately.

 

[Neil (Texas)]

State here: http://eifslawfirm.com/eif.htm

 

[Mountain Man]

David, Real stucco is hard. Knock on it, it feels and sounds solid. EIFS is basically installed over a Styrofoam sheathing. It will feel and sound hollow. Want to really know, if you push the pointed end of you tape on the wall and it easily punches through..... Opps, it is not real.

 

[Restrain]

Note - there can be similar problems with real stucco as well. Look for cracks around windows, joints in walls, where two walls come together, etc. Look where flashing ends at roof runoffs. From the ground, look at where the water has splashed up - does it show deterioration.

I always put a warning and disclosure comment on any home that I do that has a stucco exterior. CYA.

 

[Rick Neighbors]

David,
From my limited experience, stucco has expansion joints, EIFS doesn't.

 

[David S. Roberson]

Coated Styrofoam? Really? I know I've not seen any of this, thank goodness. I'm in a pretty small market, and I can count all the stucco houses in my county on my fingers (just about all houses here are either vinyl or brick, some wood, some older masonite & asbestos, even some old asphalt shingle with the brick pattern) but I will keep an eye out and start poking all the stucco houses I see!

 

[Larry Lyke]

David --

Just by sight, it can be hard to tell the difference between Dryvit and stucco. Especially if it's a newer home (last 10 years) and was professionally installed.

I say "professionally" in the way you expect it to mean.

Dryvit doesn't breathe like stucco. With the latter, unless a lot of water is getting in, which would be very obvious, it will probably evaporate or wick away before doing anything like puddling and causing mold damage.

That doesn't mean there isn't evidence of beginning dryrot, but that's still years down the road before damage would be noticed.

The class action ads been running in our papers for a couple of months. Began about the last time we discussed it here in the Forum.