If you love the look of stone residential exteriors — or even stone accent walls and columns inside! — but your home can’t support the weight of complete stones for one reason or another, stone veneer is a great material for you to look into. There was a point in time when not everyone could actually use stones for home renovation projects, no matter how much they liked the aesthetic.
Today, however, the wide variety of stone veneer products on the market have changed the game, making the gorgeous look of stone accessible to everyone — no matter where they live or how big their budget happens to be. Here, you’ll discover everything you need to know about stone veneers before you dive into your next big Carolina residential remodeling job!
How are stone veneers installed?
Stone veneer products require a good bit of prep work before they can be properly installed. A qualified North Carolina or South Carolina contractor will be able to handle this process for you — trying to put up stone veneers yourself if you have no experience could backfire.
There are actually five layers (some of them very thin) that are required for a successful, long-lasting stone veneer application. First, asphalt felt, or Grade-D building paper must be hung to serve as a moisture barrier. This prevents water from seeping through and damaging the stone or causing it to fall later.
Then, self-furring galvanized lath is installed to help support the mortar that holds each piece of stone veneer together. The mortar scratch coat is next — again, this provides additional support for the stones themselves.
The mortar setting bed is the final component before the stone veneers. This bonds every piece of stone to the underlying scratch coat. Finally, the stones are the final piece of the installation puzzle!
What are stone veneers made from?
There are actually a couple of different types of stone veneers. Some products are very literally shaved off of real stones, such as granite and limestone. These are authentic stone, but much thinner — and therefore, lighter — than an entire piece of rock would be.
Other manufacturers create synthetic stone veneers that look very much like the real thing. These molds are crafted from Portland cement, an aggregate like pumice, and iron-oxide pigmentation.
How much do stone veneers cost?
In addition to weighing less than full stones, stone veneers are much less costly — this is, in part, due to the fact that there is simply less of them when compared to complete stone pieces.
Real, whole stones are generally priced from $7 to $19 per square foot. Stone veneers, however, typically range from about $1.25 to $8 per square foot. This is a much more palatable price point for Carolina homeowners who are looking to stick to a specific budget!
If you are thinking about doing any sort of home renovation project in the near future, the expert team at Hatch Homes is here to help. Contact our office today to learn more about all of the services we have available and how we can help you create your dream house in North Carolina or South Carolina.