Going to help a client on an out of town camera installation tomorrow. He tells me the building has dryvit on the exterior. (1/4" plaster + 1" styrofoam) This is an analog camera system, so I will also have an outdoor box for the connections to the siamese cables. I have never performed an installation on dryvit. I typically use SPAX screws for mounting directly to cinder block...the likely structure behind the dryvit. I am very doubtful I can make these work...even if I can find any of the proper length. Any recommendations for the proper mounting of the cameras and outdoor boxes on dryvit?

Generally cams & boxes for cams are not that heavy at all. And on that material, simply doing an anchor with SS screws work fine. I like these for the task:

[Link: amazon.com]


Analog? I'm going to guess you mean HD analog, like TVI, CVI, AHD, HD-SDI, etc. Otherwise someone needs to get kicked in the nuts... hard!

Look up mounting to EIFS.

I'm just spinning ideas here based on the information I'm seeing, but...

The client has to know that mounting ANYTHING to this will damage it permanently. That won't matter behind the camera mount, but it will matter in ten years when they want to do something else. They need to think of the new owner of the place when they sell it, and what these damaged wall areas will do to the sale price. And, hell, the neighborhood!

So the outside is essentially styrofoam and you have to go quite some distance through it before you reach material that will support what's mounted.

Assume you've got the screws worked out. You can't just take a normal mount and bolt it to the wall. Properly tightening the screws will put so much pressure on the outer surface that it will collapse, leaving you with a loose mount and styrofoam that will just get worse over time.

What you'll need to do is spread the pressure exerted by the mounting screws over a larger area than the camera mount. Let's say your mount's area is about the same as a 2 gang electrical box, about 4" x 4". Make a back plate for the mount, say an 8" circle. (Yes, this is ugly and sure as hell not subtle!) Arrange a half dozen or more screws around the outer edge of this plate and tighten them only until the plate is snug on the wall. You MUST NOT crush the styrofoam AT ALL! It will help in the long run to use some glue on the back of the plate, too, as that will stabilize the entire plate better than just screws.

That's what I'd do, but I'm just inventing this on the fly. The sources I found when googling "mounting to dryvit" were my starting place. There are probably better ideas out there.

Seal it good. The biggest thing about artificial stucco is if moisture gets behind it, it can rot the wall from inside out.

Great input...and fast responses! THANK YOU !

My standard technique for mounting something that is too heavy or has too much leverage on a surface is to use long bolts that go completely through the soft surface and lag into something substantial. I cut a piece of pipe that is exactly the thickness of the soft surface, threading the screws through the pipe. This creates a solid platform to mount my gadget without placing any stress on the soft surface. Take care to seal against weather if necessary.

Be careful perforating this stuff- a friends' company refused to work with it after seeing the mold problems, years ago. They wouldn't even do it if the client begged, offered to pay more or offered to sign a waiver.

If it's in a very dry place, maybe it can be your call, but I would look for solid material to mount on.

This is the way to do this. Liberal use of clear caulk on the outside of the pipe and inside as well will seal against moisture. You have to seal penetrations made in dryvit, or you open your self up to all kinds of issues with moisture getting in and the damage it does.

Pretty thorough guidelines in the EIS Industry Member's Association guide here:

[Link: bestmaterials.com]

As others have noted, good support (sleeves or blocking back to the sheathing) and lots of sealing appear critical....

Can you recess the backbox into the soft stuff and mount the camera to the box?

Buzz is a smart man. I also do it this way. In this case a plastic straw would practically work. I would buy some thin plastic tubing like ice maker line.
I have seen this product type used without any backer other than the mounting studs.

Thanks again for all the input! It was overwhelming! I successfully installed the cameras and boxes in the dryvit. I used the Toggler alligator anchors. Perfect solution. I also sealed everywhere I could find a hole, then around the perimeter of the camera bases, boxes, etc. I'm very confident this will be a long term successful installation.

Unless you are mounting some big heavy cameras, you should be fine. The cameras I mount usually are only 1-2 pounds at the most. Never been a problem, even thru a couple of hurricanes and getting hit with things.