EIFS Trim

Every day new materials are emerging that make building supplies last longer, more fitted to individual requirements, and more available to home owners. Building materials such as EIFS quoins (sometimes known as expanded polystyrene quoins) make beautifying your home cost-effective, widely attainable and are far more durable than existing materials such as wood quoins. Unfortunately, not all vendors are as dedicated to superior quality, and not all corner quoins are inherently built to last the life of your home.

EIFS quoins have a look comparable to stone quoins, but are made from a light-weight styrofoam core, which is then coated with a fibreglass mesh mesh to help with flexibility and increase durability, then ideally 2 layers of a cement coating to give it the “stone” or “pre-cast” look and feel. It is very important to ensure that any product you purchase is produced to the highest standards, insuring it will last the longest:
A) The polystyrene core of the stucco quoin should consist of no recycled content. The reason is that recycled expanded polystyrene has an inconsistent density and has a higher chance of having pockets of moisture. The varying density will result in some parts of the polystyrene being “softer” than others, and over time, little indents will appear in the final coating, making the supposedly “smooth” quoin look bumpy. Moisture in styrofoam always comes out over time, and can result in bubbles underneath the coating and potential delamination.
B) The mesh that prevents the outer cement coating from cracking is at the mercy of the alkali within the cement coating itself. The alkali can cause the mesh to disintegrate and entirely vanish, leaving the EIFS quoin vulnerable to cracking. Mesh such as drywall mesh is not coated to withstand such use.
C) The final coating should actually be composed of 2 separate coats totaling 1/8 inch. 1/8 of an inch coating applied in a single thickness will release heat as it “cures”,  causing the coating to crack. By coating the top layer in 2 separate applications at 1/16th of an inch each, with 24 hours in between, the coating will form a single, monolithic layer that will not crack. Additionally, (while this makes the product a little more expensive) an “acrylic binder” (basically a glue) should be mixed in with the cement coating. This binds the cement molecules together to make the end-coating simultaneously stronger and more flexible (and therefore crack resistant).
EIFS quoins are similar to expensive pre-cast stone quoins once the issues of quality have been addressed – providing an identical look but without the associated cost and weight. Using a simple adhesive like PL Premium or an EIFS adhesive, EIFS quoins can be installed by the atypical home owner, saving sometimes thousands on installation costs. It does not require any structural reinforcing and can easily be applied over EIFS, Stucco or Brick. It is sometimes recommended that a temporary fastener be used (such as nails) to hold the product in place while the adhesive cures – about 24 hours.
The masonry coating actually absorbs the pigments within the paint, creating a single, continuous bond for the color of the home owner’s choice. This allows the home owner to select a color which complements the color of their main wall, one that contrasts well with the main wall color, or possibly even the same color as the wall itself. All of this means that you can design your home to suit your style, and easily change it to suit your tastes.