Many people are skepticle of man made or "fake" stone. However, I have found this material to be very easy to work with and the look is as good as the real thing. Manufacturers have responded to the demand and there are so many different styles available that you can achieve just about any look you might want. These stones are made by pouring light weight concrete into molds that are shaped like rock. There are hundreds of molds used to give enough variety in shapes and colors. They can be cut or broken with a hammer and the cuts are concealed along the morter lines. The stone is grooved on the back side for a strong motorbind. There are outside corner pieces that come in various sizes in an L shape to create an authentic look. The flat surface stones are priced by the sq ft / 4 to 10 ft and the corners are priced by the linear ft.

The 1st step in applying stone to an exterior wood is to staple felt over the surface. Use a 4" wide strip of peel & stick membrane around windows and doors and over the transition between the sheathing and the foundation. This can also be used on all 90 degree corners. Next a wire lath is stapled to the wall so the morter will adhere properly. You want to use a hammer stapler for this and put them close together so that the lath stays tight to the wall. Extend the lath down over the foundation to the ground and fasten to the wall either with concrete nails or a good adhesive. This stone is light and requires no brick ledge. This same procedure can be used all over drywall.

I use a heavy-duty drill with a good paddle bid to mix up the morter. Water and electricity will need to be available. You will also need a few tools including: hammer, tuck pointer, stiff brush, angle grinder and masonry blade.

This stone can be dry stacked (no joint) or with a small, medium or large joint depending on the look you want. The larger looks more rustic as on farm houses, etc. Again, depending on the look you want you can fill the joints shallow or full. It is a good idea to open several boxes and sort the stone out by shapes and sizes so that when you go searching for a certain stone you have several to choose from which saves a lot of time searching for the right fit. It is best to think ahead two or three stones at a time fitting them in place to view before setting permanently. This way you can break up the grout lines and eliminate odd shapes. The less cutting the better.

In order to make cuts look natural you can use a combination of brick hammer and angle grinder. Its good to practice on some scraps or broken pieces to get the hang of it. A turbo blade works better than a segmented blade for cutting stone because it has less kick back and leaves a better look. You can eliminate small corners with a brick hammer. Use the head of the hammer to break off the bulky back side of the rock at an angle then use the chisel side of the hammer and pore the stone to the line you've drawn. Straight cuts don't look natural so feather the line with the grinder using in and out motion until the edges look more natural.

When dealing with transition like corners, windows, doors etc. I start along these parts first. Go up a corner first and work away. Go up the sides of a window and door and work away as well.

When mixing I allow it to stand for 5 minutes so the sand can absorb the water. Then I add a little more water and mix. I use type S mortor though some use type N. Get advice on mixing as this will depend on how much you are mixing at a time.

Apply the mortor to lath and the back of the stone, then gently stick them to the wall. Then tuck point around the joint and leave the stone alone. You may need to come back later and fill in the joints with a tuck pointer. You should clean the joint up throughout the day to keep a consistent look but don't do it with the morter too wet because it will be shiny and smooth. The frequency of scraping and brushing the morter joints will depend on the temperatures, sunlight and consistency of the morter. If the last stones you get are not ready to be tooled by quitting time, scrape all the morter from the joints and fill them the next day using a grout bag.

Home centers, some lumber and brick yards and other specialty stores are good sources to view and purchase these materials.

More Tuck Pointing Tips

For large jointws you will need a grout bag. Load the morter mix with just a little more liquid than normal. Fold the open end of the bag 90 degrees to keep the morter from coming out. Then position the nozzle so the morter will flow into your joint lines. Then squeeze the bag to force the morter into the joint. Once you've got the joint lines filled with morter you can let it set to the right consistency then go back with your tuck pointing tool and compact and shape them.