Natural Stone faced wall

[bricknblock]

Getting ready to start a job which involves natural stone...wall is about 3' feet high, and about 30' long, will be installed against an existing cinder block wall...have a minimum amount of experience working with it, the pieces are limestone, and were salvaged from a foundation, the majority of which will have to be cut/chisled....the customer is not real concerned about the squareness of the face of the wall since it's all natural stone being used....any tips that I should keep in mind? Should I just wire mesh and mortar? And how long would it take a couple of workers to do? Thanks in advance for any and all replies!

[Fine Edge]

You shouldn't need any wire mesh, just scratch coat the cinder block.
Can't tell you a time factor, we don't install any limestone and it seems that there's different time factors for different types of stone and it also depends on the application factor and how the customer wants the finished product to look.
Time is also a hard thing to judge by a single post because location, grade, ease of material handling all play an important role when trying to price a job.
Plus, I've never seen you work so it's hard to say how long it will take you on a job that size. Everyone's work ethics are slightly different. Me, I hate to stop even for lunch.

[bricknblock]

thanks for the info, figure the time factor would be difficult to estimate, will have a couple of workers who probably have more experience in that area than I do

[Stonehenge]

Is this a veneer stone, or is the stone relatively thick?

I second the nix on the wire mesh. Scratch coat alone will be fine. And i agree that man-hours will be hard to estimate - I also don't like stopping, but for masonry work we tend to be slow as molasses.

[bricknblock]

Many of the pieces are very thick, I imagine I will be able to cut one end with a saw for the backside, but I am concerned about the amount of chisel work that will need to be done...the customer is not real picky about how the flush the front of the wall will be, so that will help, but this is all salvaged stone, and it's not veneer...

[bricknblock]

one more thing, I understand that the most I would be able to stack at a time would be a 12"-18" high per day to allow for dry time and stability...is this about accurate?

[Lanelle]

I think that's accurate.

[Fine Edge]

If your stone is thick and has a good solid base to sit on, I would try to stack more than 12" - 18". Given the length of the wall, the first sections should be plenty secure by the time you finish the first few base courses.
Just wondering, however, if this stone is to be faced or stacked?
The thread title says faced but faced and stacked are of course very different and you can apply more stone if stacking.
Also, if stacked, how thick and deep is the average stone?

[bricknblock]

inexperienced in this area, what is the difference between faced and stacked?

[Squizzy Taylor]

Originally posted by bricknblock
one more thing, I understand that the most I would be able to stack at a time would be a 12"-18" high per day to allow for dry time and stability...is this about accurate?

Sometimes we get 2' in a day, depends on how green (moist) the limestone is.

[Fine Edge]

Faced:D

[Fine Edge]

Stacked::biglaugh:

[Fine Edge]

See the difference?
The only thing that I'm not sure about is how this limestone looks as far as dimensions. I'm assuming it's more of a block than irregular?
Never worked with it before but I know Squizzy has.

[Squizzy Taylor]

Fine E is on the money. We don't get much call for stacked (read dry wall) anymore but the technique is the same as Cornish wall builders used for hundreds of years. Most of out limestone is mortared and for faced we will use a form, even laying it down to pack in and mortar up and then stand up (with reinforcing bars inside).

Facing existing structure can vary from very enjoyable to bloody hard work depending on the finish required. If it has to be as tight and even jointed as I see you guys do flag and patio stuff then its like $400/yd2 minimum charge plus materials.

Limestone is not as consistent in its hardness and texture which can make it challenging to split and dress face. Tools we use are typically axes of various size, diamond face wheel on 5" and 7" grinders, Cut off saw (Qwik-Cut) and various carb rubbing stones, hammers and like what we call a bolster.

Broken block work where you have stone that is cut on one or two sides can produce a stunning wall but you have to get into the zone with your stone selection for a random course effect. I will try and get some photos up of random mortared limestone construction. Here is one using 3rd grade blocks to build a buttress type spiral staircase. The colour quality is poor.

[skahuna]

thats an awsome staircase. do you have any pictures of it finished?

[bricknblock]

thanks for the responses, have been working the job for a couple of days, took a bit getting use to it, but now I'm getting the hang of it and it's moving along pretty well....and yes, the pieces are very irregular, all natural stone, with a dry stack look to it...like putting together a very heavy puzzle

[Squizzy Taylor]

Originally posted by skahuna
thats an awsome staircase. do you have any pictures of it finished?

Its all done now...I'll see if I can grab a pic today or tomorrow.

[Squizzy Taylor]

There ya go..sorry about the picture quality:

Oh crap!

[Squizzy Taylor]

Here it is

[Squizzy Taylor]

And another:

[Stuck in NH]

Squizzy that is so sweet looking I am lost for words...:woot:

[skahuna]

wow! thats awesome how is the inside finished?

[Squizzy Taylor]

Originally posted by skahuna
wow! thats awesome how is the inside finished?

If you look at the initial pic on the first page you will see the steps are constructed from table saw (diamond) cut natural stone. The owners may cap the treads with timber after its been sealed. The whole tower is solid limestone. The in side face is just grooved motar.

These people are owner builders and are pretty hands on. I got the intial job in my skid just to clear the lot and prepare the slab. The lady of the house has been collecting stained glass windows for 3 years for this build. Their out building (studio) is the bit I like best as its solid stone with the walls a foot thick. The majority of the house is fast wall on the inside and limestone cladding external.