Stucco lath with stud spacing indicators

Abstract

Stud spacing indicators applied to or built into the welded wire and woven wire fabric lath which is used with cementitious exterior wall coating systems.

1 . A wire lath system to indicate stud spacing for use in a cementitious exterior wall coating where backing material or sheathing cover the studs from view, the system comprising: 
 a wire lath sheet comprising a mesh of spaced wire formed in a geometric pattern, the lath sheet capable of being installed over a sheet of material covering a series of studs from view and capable of being attached to the series of studs through the sheet of material so that a flat surface of a cementitious wall may be formed over and encompass the lath sheet, the lath sheet comprising a series of stud indicator wires at spaced intervals in the geometric pattern of the spaced wire corresponding to the stud spacing, the series of stud indicator wires formed in the lath sheet as an integral part of the wire structure, the series of stud indicator wires bearing a visual indicator to distinguish the stud indicator wires from the other wires of the lath sheet to indicate the location of the studs.    
   
   
       2 . The system of  claim 1  wherein the visual indicator comprises a physical feature formed as an integral part of the stud indicator wire structure.  
   
   
       3 . The system of  claim 2  wherein the physical feature comprises additional wire structure details in the stud indicator wire not found in the other wires.  
   
   
       4 . The system of  claim 2  wherein the physical feature comprises differently shaped furrs in the stud indicator wire visually distinguishable from the furrs of the other wire.  
   
   
       5 . The system of  claim 1  wherein the visual indicator comprises a visual quality of the stud indicator wire.  
   
   
       6 . The system of  claim 5  wherein the visual quality comprises using a differently colored wire for the stud indicator wire than the color used for the other wire.  
   
   
       7 . The system of  claim 6  wherein the differently colored wire comprises pre-painted wire.  
   
   
       8 . The system of  claim 6  wherein the differently colored wire comprises a colored galvanized wire.  
   
   
       9 . The system of  claim 1  wherein the visual indicator comprises an additional element added to the stud indicator wire that is not added to the other wire.  
   
   
       10 . The system of  claim 9  wherein the additional element comprises a colored material covering at least a portion of the stud indicating wire, the colored material not found on the other wire.  
   
   
       11 . The system of  claim 1  wherein the lath sheet comprises a welded wire mesh of orthogonally intersecting wires and the stud indicator wires each run straight across the lath sheet in a single strand corresponding to a centerline of a stud.  
   
   
       12 . The system of  claim 1  wherein the lath sheet comprises a woven wire mesh lath formed in a pattern having geometrically shaped wires interconnected by straight wires in an alternating series in each line across the lath sheet and the alternating straight lines of each of the stud indicating wires correspond to the centerline of a stud.