Learned the hard way: stick with brick ties for stucco, not wire mesh in ABQ

I used welded wire mesh on my south wall instead of proper brick ties like the old-timers said, and after two monsoons the stucco started cracking right above the lintel on my garage window near Juan Tabo. Replacing that section cost me about $400 last fall. Now I'm re-doing the whole side with galvanized ties and wondering if anyone else has seen mesh fail with our adobe soil here.

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parkerk564h ago

stucco started cracking right above the lintel" - exactly what I saw on a buddy's house off Eubank. Heard from a contractor that wire mesh just can't handle the freeze-thaw we get here with the clay soil.