An Introduction to Parging

MnR Stucco are parging experts. We know what a good parging system is and how to install it.

Here we will introduce the importance of parging and teach you a bit about this component of your exterior. More content will be added as we continue to redevelop our website.

Parging usually refers to the cementitious covering that goes over your foundation. However, parging is more than that. Sometimes, for example, parts of walls or stairs are also parged.

And parging is far more than just a thin layer of cement.

How our parging looks.

The most obvious thing about parging is how it looks on your building.

The majority of parging is very nondescript. It is “a boring grey band of cement” at the bottom of your walls. It can be this way - if that is what you want - and we will make sure it looks good. It will have a uniform colour and uniform texture to it. This parging choice is meant to not draw attention to itself and is supposed to provide a finished look.

With just a little more effort, your cementitious parging can be spruced up. A simple upgrade is tinting it - maybe charcoal or a shade of brown. Another way to create some interest is to embed a pattern in it. Maybe you want brick or stone shapes, a pattern of lines, or some other motif carved or imprinted into it.

How about some colour? One client wanted a brick look. We imprinted “bricks” into the cement and then used three colours of masonry paint in a random pattern to colour these bricks. The end result was great - we created a parging “made” of brick.

Adding a layer of acrylic stucco to the parging allows you to add a pop of colour to the parged area. Acrylic can be tinted any colour. You can choose a colour that recedes into the background but complements your wall colour. Or maybe you want to add a stronger colour that adds dimension to your exterior by becoming an additional component to your palette of colours.

Another choice is to do your parging with stone. It can be anything you love the look of - fieldstone, stacked stone or maybe ledgestone. It can be natural or cultured stone. We don’t recommend the foam or other light options on the market as they are not strong enough to withstand physical hits to them or even the climate they are exposed to - especially when located just above the grade/landscape level.

Your parging can be functional AND decorative. Tell us what you want and we will make it happen. Don’t underestimate our skill or our creativity!

We protect your foundation.

A lot of effort is put into protecting your building from water infiltration - roofing, sealing windows and wall penetrations, a well-formed and poured foundation, eavestroughs and downspouts, etc.

Parging is one more line of defence in the fight against water.

Parging protects against moisture seeping into your foundation. One way it does this is to provide a consistent surface for water to run over to the ground. The parging is exposed to the water, not the foundation. Parging also fills any imperfections in your foundation such as pits and voids at the surface. With our harsh climate, filling these small areas pays off. Helping water shed off the wall and not sit in the voids keeps the water from hastening the deterioration of the foundation. Damage results from water sitting on the wall and dissolving the minerals in the cement and also from ice filling a void and expanding thus widening the void.

Sometimes a foundation is not just a cement wall. Some buildings are built with exterior insulation on the foundation in the form of foam - either sheets of foam like EPS or XPS attached to the wall or the use of ICF blocks (Insulated Concrete Forms) making the foundation. This foam need protecting from exposure and parging does that. Not protecting the foam can result in it becoming waterlogged and leading to it deteriorating and/or separating from the foundation. Exposed foam also is burrowed into by insects, rodents, and birds - we’ve seen it many times. Lastly, having damaged foam nullifies its purpose of adding insulation (R-value) to your living or working space on the interior side of the foundation wall.

Additionally, a foundation covered with foam is more susceptible to damage from maintaining your yard. Shovel hits in the winter and whipper-snippers and lawnmower hits in the summer break the parging because the foam behind it is not strong enough to take the force of these impacts. As soon as the parging, and thus the foam, is compromised, foundation damage can follow.

Need parging?

Now that you know parging is for finishing the look of your exterior AND for protecting your foundation, you need yours to be in place and in good condition.