Then apply the stucco, making sure to leave it 3/8 inch below the finished surface. Pay attention to the edges of the patch. There's a tendency to get a little thick there.

Q: My 18-year-old, two-story house has exterior stucco that is in good shape. But the doors and windows are trimmed in rough-sawn, painted 1-by- 4s, some of which have begun to rot.