By Craig A. Shutt
It's becoming cast in stone today: Manufactured stone veneer offers key advantages for remodeling projects that make it a key weapon in the renovation arsenal. As homeowners look for materials that can add their own personality to their space, the benefits offered by this product are making it a more popular option.
The products consist of a mixture of natural ingredients, including Portland cement, lightweight aggregates and iron-oxide pigments, which become integral to the stone during fabrication. These materials are cast into molds taken from natural stone to create products that look like stone but provide added benefits.
"We use a lot of stone veneers on interiors, but we're seeing more used on exteriors all the time," says Maribeth Gaines, a senior interior designer with Sawhorse Inc. in Atlanta. "It's especially beneficial in a remodeling project if you need to match an existing stone while blending new and old spaces."
Indeed, the range of colors and styles makes it a strong choice during a renovation, notes Steve Schwarz Jr., president of S.S. Schwarz Construction in West Chicago, Ill. "We get a lot of transient people coming into the Midwest from all over, and they want to bring some of the stones from their old homes—such as Arizona or North Carolina—to their new homes." Michigan River Rock is popular in his area, with wine colors, such as Chardonnay, also popular.
"The new colors are really the key to the material's growth," agrees Maribeth. And the manufacturing process provides a realistic appearance, she notes. "Most clients can't recognize the difference between real stone and the faux stone. So they immediately see the benefits of using it."
Better than the real thing?
One of the key benefits they see is the lower price—approximately half the cost of real stone, Maribeth estimates. Another difference is that, as a veneered panel, the material weighs considerably less than real stone, as much as 75 percent less, she estimates. Not only does that make it easier and quicker to install, but it reduces the structural supports needed.
Manufactured stone veneer doesn't require foundations or footings, eliminating the time and money necessary for those supports. And it encourages additional projects, notes Steve. "You can take off a home's siding and put on manufactured stone," he points out. "That lets you create a whole new look for a home quickly and inexpensively."
The product also provides an elegant, consistent appearance, he adds. "Because it's manufactured, the material artistically offers consistent, tighter joints than traditional masonry can, so you have a better look to the pattern."
Installing the material is easy for a professional remodeler, he notes. As with many techniques, preparation is important. Knowing carpentry and masonry is a plus. Providing secure house wrap is critical, too; Steve uses 15-pound felt over the sheathing. "You have to pay close attention to flashing to ensure you manage the water flow," he adds.
Both designers expect to see manufactured stone grow in popularity for exteriors. "It's not really a hard sell for our customers," Maribeth says. "The look is so good that homeowners don't feel it's a compromise to use it, and the other benefits are significant."
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