How to fix a through hole in stucco on the outside of the house?

Question

Some contractors drilled some holes on the outside of the house and I need to patch them up.

One hole is about 1 to 1.5" in diameter. They drilled through so that they can put a piece of wire through to feel for studs! (apparently a stud finder didn't work)

There are some other smaller holes...they used a small drill bit...maybe 1/4" diameter.

My question is how do I patch those holes up? These holes don't have a surface on the other side. If I were to just fill it with something there's nothing on the other side for the filler to hold on to, right?

What should I do this fix?

Can I just fill the hole with stucco patching compound? (Something like Quikrete Pre-Mixed Stucco Patch?)

UPDATE: I can access some holes from the attic. Is there something that I can do from the back side of the hole from the attic? Should I screw in a metal mesh on the back side in the attic and then go to the outside and fill the whole with stucco patching compound?

Answer 1

The best way is to knock out enough stucco to find the studs, mount a backing plate to the studs, and stucco over that.

Now, that's a lot of work, so there are quicker& easier ways. Perhaps you could cut a small plug out of plywood or similar material which press-fits each hole, then do a skim-coat over it to match the stucco.

It comes down to time vs. quality, basically.