Well, i have 50 lin ft (36″tall) of river rock to install tommorrow (and the next day… who knows) Already installed metal lath and scratch coat. My main question is the ledger stone (where the stone meets the log siding) is fairly thick (2 1/2 inches and sticks out from the wall by about 3 inches. How do I get that ledger stone to stick and not fall off until the mud sets up? The guys at the local building supply told me to stick it then put screws under it to support it until it sets up, then remove screws. Not sure if this is the best way.
They also told me to start from the top and work down to the bottom…sound good? Any other tips/ideas?
I have done quite a bit of block/brick work, just never messed with this fake stone. Thanks for any help.
upnorthframer
“If you think education is expensive, try ignorance!!!”
Replies
If I understand your question, I've just used a temporary ledger board to support the bottom row and keep everything straight & level. Just like tile work. I always worked from the bottom up, but ???
Mike Hennessy
Pittsburgh, PA
Starting from the top down will make sure your stones are packed tighter at the top and most visible spot. I think I'ld try fastening a 2X along the top, setting all the ledger stones one day, then remove the 2X and do the rest of the stones, top to btm ...
upnorthfamer
Yes when putting on fake stone start at the top and work down to your ledger board.. Screws will work as long as you don't touch or lean against it while it's setting up.
If you can you might also cut some prop sticks to hold it in place.
No doubt you have probley started the install of the rock this morning, The last job I did for the state of Va. parks dept., The drawings spected 2.5"x2.5"x3/16" galv. angle iron for the wainscote ledge to be glued onto. I attached the iron to the cmu foundation with 1/4"x 2" tapcons with 1.25" drip edge of top of the wainscote stone as per instuctions.
There are several brands and types of thinset which have serious adhesive qualities, for installing heavy tiles on ceilings and walls. Wouldn't one of them be appropriate in this case, to keep the fake stone from moving?
Edited 6/19/2008 10:58 am by Hudson Valley Carpenter
If it was just the individual pieces of fake rock itself ,yes that is what I would use for overhead or special applications , but for the type of trim or accent pieces such as ledgers which are usually a lot thicker/heavier that the regular wall stone pieces, they don't have enough rear surface area to adhere very well without some sort of mechanical support and with the wall stone varying in thickness from 1/4" to 2.5" if you used all your thicker stones to butt up or support the ledge you would have an unacceptable number of repeating shaped stones, for a random pattern such as a creek or river rock style.
A lot depends on the manufacture, some fill out their patterns with only half a dozen rock molds in various colors others use up to fifty different rock molds to fill out a specific pattern.
Do you have any recommendations in fake stone? Any company or type that looks authentic and is easy to install.
I've only looked at web site photos so far but the newer stuff appears to be a lot closer to the real deal than what I've seen in the past.
Edited 6/19/2008 4:54 pm by Hudson Valley Carpenter
Check out culturedstone.com or eldoradostone.comML
Owens-corning has some nice stuff, while Eldarado is pretty much the most popular, I myself favor the smaller manufactures as they seem to have the lightest product available. I know that not all of the bigger manufactures product lines are easy to get in in different locations in the U.S., as they offer different styles for each coast.of the three different masonry dist. I deal with they have two or three different manu. they offer.
Thanks dedubya
Suggest treating your "ledger" on wall as though it's a very large fireplace mantel; support will be covered by grout.
Follow stone manufacturer's directions .
Use "plastic" cement as it sticks better than regular, cover back of stones well, apply stones with a slight twist motion. If using very large stones just hold for a minute will usually be all that is needed. Gentle use of rubber mallet may help if necessary.
River rock start either way; but for larger stones wall start at the top and work down lets you place full stones at top and do any cutting of stones at bottom.
I don't like the worry of rocks coming loose or sliding if the mortar isn't quite right, so I cheat. I drill a small hole in the back an inch deep, slide a 2' finishing nail in, set the rock and tap it with a rubber mallet. The short time it takes to do this is more than offset by not having to monkey around being careful.