Stucco weep screed & ground clearance — WRB laps the flange, ≥4″ above grade

Stucco ends at a weep screed, not at the ground: the WRB laps over its flange, the lath stops on it, and weep holes drain the wall — kept ≥4″ above earth (2″ above paved) so it can’t wick water into the framing.

A base-of-wall cross-section showing how stucco terminates at a galvanized weep screed. The weather-resistive barrier laps over the screed’s attachment flange so water sheds outward, the metal lath stops on the screed, and weep holes let water that gets behind the stucco drain out at the bottom. The screed must sit at least 4 inches above earth or 2 inches above paved surfaces. Running stucco down to grade wicks ground water into the framing and rots the sill plate. — Source: IRC R703.7.2.1 / ASTM C1063 §7.10

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A base-of-wall cross-section showing how stucco terminates at a galvanized weep screed. The weather-resistive barrier laps over the screed’s attachment flange so water sheds outward, the metal lath stops on the screed, and weep holes let water that gets behind the stucco drain out at the bottom. The screed must sit at least 4 inches above earth or 2 inches above paved surfaces. Running stucco down to grade wicks ground water into the framing and rots the sill plate.

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    <img src="https://remodelcalculators.com/api/figure-embed/stucco-weep-screed" alt="A base-of-wall cross-section showing how stucco terminates at a galvanized weep screed. The weather-resistive barrier laps over the screed’s attachment flange so water sheds outward, the metal lath stops on the screed, and weep holes let water that gets behind the stucco drain out at the bottom. The screed must sit at least 4 inches above earth or 2 inches above paved surfaces. Running stucco down to grade wicks ground water into the framing and rots the sill plate." width="800" height="470" style="width:100%;height:auto;border:0" loading="lazy">
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    Diagram: <a href="https://remodelcalculators.com/construction-diagrams/stucco-weep-screed" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Stucco weep screed & ground clearance — WRB laps the flange, ≥4″ above grade</a> — courtesy of <a href="https://remodelcalculators.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">RemodelCalculators.com</a>
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