Stucco siding is great for insulating homes, especially in warmer climates. It’s attractive, affordable, low-maintenance, and fire-resistant, to boot. But stucco isn’t everyone’s cup of tea.
If you’re not a fan of the exterior stucco on your home and want to see what’s underneath (fingers crossed for high-quality brick!), you may be able to remove the stucco yourself. You’ll just need a few tools, several days to dedicate to the project, and a whole lot of elbow grease.
Wondering how to remove stucco from exterior walls? We’ll walk you through all the steps below. Strap in and prepare yourself for some tough and sweaty days ahead.
Prepping to Remove Exterior Stucco
Before rolling up your sleeves to remove your stucco siding, make sure you have a game plan for what you’re doing after it comes off.
If you’re removing the stucco walls because of severe mold damage or cracking, you may have no choice but to remove it. And if your intention is to install new siding no matter what’s beneath, you can proceed without issue.
But if you’re removing the stucco because you’re hopeful about the brick or wood siding underneath, you might realize early- to mid-project that there’s a lot more trouble lurking beneath the stucco. In that case, you may need to rethink the project entirely.
Repairing Stucco
If you’re simply removing the stucco because it’s damaged in some places, it might be easier to repair it instead. Stucco repair is a relatively easy project if you have the time to spare and the tools at home.
If you’re removing stucco in the hopes of discovering a beautiful brick wall underneath, you might need a backup plan. If the stucco was installed over the brick with a steel lath (wire mesh) in between, the brick facade will be pockmarked with nail holes—and that’s not a great look for the exterior of your home. You may wind up needing to install new siding instead of embracing the old brick.
Even if the brick isn’t covered in nail holes, it may be in poor shape. Previous homeowners might have originally stuccoed over the brick wall because the mortar between the bricks was deteriorating and they didn’t want to bother with tuckpointing. In that case, the brick wall could have further deteriorated since the stucco was installed—and you’ll need to hire a mason to fix the damage.
Installing New Siding
If you don’t love what’s lurking beneath the stucco after you remove it, you’ll need to install replacement siding. Siding replacement costs between $5,600 and $17,500, depending on the size of your home and the type of siding you choose.
Prep the Work Site
When removing stucco from an exterior wall, you’ll want to lay tarp down on the ground to make cleanup easier. You should also have a piece or two of plywood handy to cover windows as you work. (Stucco is heavy—if you accidentally drop a piece as you’re removing it, you risk breaking through glass if you don’t safely cover nearby windows.)
You’ll also need to assemble scaffolding or put up a ladder if you’ll be working on a two-story home. If you’re afraid of heights or aren’t comfortable operating a saw several feet off the ground, reconsider this project.
Finally, you’re not safe to begin removing stucco until you’ve put on the proper protective gear. We recommend:
A respirator mask (stucco removal stirs up a lot of dusk)
Gloves, especially when yanking off large pieces of stucco
Protective eyewear, like goggles
Ear protection when operating the circular saw
Start With a Small Section in a Hidden Area
Photo: waaruchch / iStock / Getty Images
Unless you installed the stucco yourself once upon a time, you likely won’t know what lies beneath the siding. Choose a small section of stucco in an area that’s not visible to most guests (or future home buyers), like a spot behind a bush.
This will be your test spot.
Create a Small Hole Stucco
Once you’ve found your starting point, hammer a small hole to loosen the stucco from the brick or wood. Use your chisel as needed to further loosen and break apart the stucco. Then take the crowbar and pry off a small piece.
Starting small allows you to do two things:
Reassess whether removing the stucco makes sense.
Determine the depth you’ll use for your circular saw (step 5).
For instance, if you discover wire mesh between the stucco and brick, the brick will be too damaged to use as your exterior siding. If that was your goal, just patch up the stucco and call it a day.
Similarly, if you discover severely deteriorated brick beneath the stucco, it’s time to call in a professional. Find a mason near you who can help restore the underlying brick to its former glory.
Draw Guidelines With Chalk
If everything looks good upon initial inspection, you can move forward with the stucco removal. Use chalk to draw yourself guidelines for the first square chunk you’ll cut away.
Start small, creating a 1x1-foot square to remove. Stucco is heavy, so you’ll want to make sure you’re comfortable with a smaller chunk before graduating to a larger chunk.
The lines don’t need to be perfectly straight. You’re simply outlining where you’ll make your cuts with the circular saw before prying off the chunk of stucco by hand.
Cut Into the Stucco Along the Lines With a Circular Saw
When you cut your small hole into the siding at the start of this project, you should’ve noted the depth of the stucco. Set your circular saw to that depth and, using a diamond blade, cut along the guidelines you drew in chalk.
This ensures you don’t cut too deep and damage the brick, wood, studs, or other material behind the stucco.
Pry Off Chunks of Stucco
Place your hand in the small hole you created to pry off your first large chunk of stucco. Caution: It will be heavy. Spread out your feet so you don’t risk dropping the stucco on your toes.
Once you’ve pried off this first square, you can determine what size squares you’re comfortable moving forward with, based on how heavy the first chunk feels.
Draw more guidelines with chalk: It should be three sides of a square. The fourth side is already exposed from your previous cut, and that’s where you’ll grab onto the stucco to pry off the next chunk after making your cuts.
Continue to do this until you’ve removed all the stucco. When you’re working around doors and windows, you may need to ditch the saw and use a hammer, chisel, and crowbar for these pieces.
Removing the stucco could take hours, days, or even weeks depending on how thick the siding is, how large your house is, and if you have any willing friends available to help.
Cart Off Debris
As you’re removing the stucco, keep your worksite clear by hauling away large chunks in a wheelbarrow. You’ll either need to load them into a truck of your own to take to a junk site or find a local junk removal company to carry away the construction debris. Professional junk removal costs between $100 and $600 for construction debris.
Wire Brush the Brick or Cut Through the Metal Lath
If there is brick beneath the siding, you’ll need a wire brush to remove any residual stucco. Slow, deliberate strokes will yield better results; forceful, fast strokes with the brush could actually damage the brick beneath.
If there’s wood siding beneath the stucco, there’s likely a steel lath (wire mesh) that you’ll need to cut through. Grab your tin snips and cut through the mesh until you’re able to pull it away in sections.
DIY vs. Hiring a Pro
Removing stucco yourself is doable if you have all the tools you need, are OK with grueling labor, and can pack your patience—because this is a job that can span multiple days or weeks. However, there are some dangers to removing stucco: The pieces are heavy and could easily fall on your feet, and it’s also possible to damage windows and the underlying brick when removing the stucco.
On top of that, you might uncover a bigger project than you’re capable of handling when removing the stucco—like deteriorating mortar between the bricks or, worse, nail-ridden brick that you won’t be able to use for your exterior walls, which might’ve been your intention.
If you aren’t comfortable on scaffolding, don’t have the proper endurance and strength for this labor-intensive job, or are worried about what you’ll find beneath your stucco, it makes more sense to find a professional stucco company in your area and let them handle the project.
Frequently Asked Questions
The easiest way to remove stucco is to use a circular saw with a diamond blade for the cuts. It’s possible to do everything with a hammer, chisel, and crowbar—but it will take significantly longer and will wear you out faster.
If you have all the necessary tools already, you can remove stucco for under $50. But this assumes you already own a circular saw, you have access to scaffolding if you have a multi-story home, and you have a truck to haul away construction debris.
If you have to buy a few tools and supplies and pay for junk removal, stucco removal costs can reach $500 or more.
Rather than remove old stucco, many homeowners choose to install vinyl siding over their stucco—and it’s perfectly fine! You might install vinyl siding on top of stucco if you’re ready for an aesthetic change or if the stucco is severely cracked or water damaged but you don’t want to remove it.
Installing siding to existing stucco can be challenging. In most cases, it makes sense to work with a local siding contractor.
