20 Nov 2023
A Step-By-Step Guide on How to Put Stone Cladding on a Wall
The classic charm of stone-clad walls makes it easy to elevate the look of any indoor or outdoor area. If you're looking for an eye-catching yet understated approach to make your home stand out from other properties in the neighbourhood, stone wall cladding panels may be the perfect wall upgrade option for you. Owing to its enduring structure and aesthetically pleasing design, it can be used to add value both inside and outside of a space. In this blog, we’ll explore the various styles of natural stone wall cladding available. We'll also take you through installing stone cladding on a wall. Discover how to add character and beauty to your living areas by following our step-by-step on putting stone cladding on a wall.
What Is Wall Cladding?
Stone wall cladding is an effective technique for enhancing the appearance of your home and giving your area an extra personality. It employs natural stone material to make stone veneers as well as a beautiful wall covering and involves placing a thin layer of wall cladding stones onto an existing wall structure.
External wall cladding is an established material for outdoor water features and building facades. Interior wall cladding is a versatile way to give your kitchen and bath wall backsplash, living area walls and fireplace perimeter, a gorgeous accent.
One of the greatest materials for outside wall panels is stone cladding, which has traditionally been utilised for exterior wall projects for aeons. It strengthens and extends the life of your walls in addition to improving their appearance and acting as a centrepiece.
Wall Cladding: Where Is It Used?
Since stone cladding walls are typically more cost-effective compared to standard-size stone tiles, they can create remarkable visual outcomes with little initial outlay.
Stone wall cladding tiles can be used for a variety of outdoor projects, including entry pillars, garden walls, water features and fireplaces connected to patios. To infuse character and a more attractive look, stone-clad walls are popularly used as bordering elements around patios and porches, as a backdrop for dining spaces and as a wall partition. Furthermore, it gives any entertainment area a cosy atmosphere all year round.
Stone wall cladding is a viable option for interior living areas, such as family rooms, dining rooms and reception areas in commercial spaces. It creates a distinctive element for a kitchen backsplash wall and looks fantastic next to fireplaces. It results in a visually arresting wall design no matter where it is installed. You will also see stone-clad walls with water features in spaces like spas, as it's a great way to create a tranquil, eye-catching ambience.
What are the Styles Available in Stone Wall Cladding?
There are several styles available in stone wall cladding, each with distinct aesthetics and qualities.
- Traditional Walling Styles
- Free Style Wall Cladding
- Stacked Stone Wall Cladding
- Dry Stone Wall Cladding
The construction and architecture industries have long employed this walling style, as its name reflects. This type of walling has been utilised in all historic locations and monuments that have wall covering installed. This is simple to assemble because it employs rectangular stone pieces and comes with a back-side sawn cut. This walling style remains fashionable today because it appeals to people who want an earthy and rustic vibe.
Uneven stone forms are utilised in Free Style Walling, where they are put together like parts of a jigsaw. This walling style is perfect for designing both contemporary and rustic looks for outdoor facades, fireplace surroundings, boundary walls and garden retaining walls. It's an organic freestyle technique where different sizes and shapes are arranged asymmetrically to produce a visually appealing, masonry-like design. Our Geneva Walling is a widespread choice for beautifying external facades and internal statement walls. Our latest addition Calista Walling is another hot pick and casts an ivory spell on your living spaces.
One widespread style that is winning hearts is Stacked Stone Walling. Using a strong adhesive backing, the stone is sliced into thin strips for this style. Although the shapes and forms of the sizes employed are distinct, typically layouts have a clean, rectangular appearance. Different styles, from rustic to modern, can be achieved by arranging the stones accordingly. Notable stones that are used in stacked stone walls style are Slate, Sandstone and Limestone. Your fireplace area will have the ideal eye-catching style thanks to our Viscon White Wall Cladding.
By applying a thin coating made from natural stones to a preexisting wall or surface, the Dry-Stone Walling style gives the walls an amazing appearance. To secure the stones in place, a specialised strong cement or glue is applied. This type of walling is popular for enhancing the facades of homes, offices and gardens because of its exquisite texture, durability and simple maintenance requirements.
Installing Wall Cladding: Step by step
- It's Important to prepare
- Decide on your stone cladding
- Measure the area and plan the design
- Assemble your tools and supplies
- Spread the adhesive
- Align and level
- Trim and cut
- Grouting and sealing
Make sure that the surface is clean and ready for stone cladding before beginning the installation process. First, give the outermost layer a thorough cleaning to get rid of any dust, debris or loose particles. To ensure lifespan, fix any cracks or flaws and, if necessary, add a weather-resistant coating.
Achieving the intended look requires careful consideration of the stone cladding type chosen. Consider elements like your personal preferences, the way you plan to use the space and the architectural design of your home. Select a material that goes well with your overall design concept, whether you go for the rugged appeal of slate or the slick appearance of Limestone.
Proper measurements are necessary to ensure a smooth installation result. Take into account any windows, doors, or other construction details, and measure the wall's height and width. Plan an arrangement considering the positioning of the borders and edges to guarantee a harmonious and aesthetically pleasing outcome.
Get all the equipment and supplies you'll need beforehand to guarantee a seamless installation. This usually consists of tile cutters or wet saws, spacers that maintain uniform spaces between stones, a spirit level, adhesives, mortar, a trowel, and a notched trowel for applying adhesive.
Press the stone cladding firmly into the wall by covering the back with a thick coating of a strong adhesive using a trowel. Be sure to cover everything evenly, particularly those corners and edges. To avoid the adhesive drying out before you lay the stones down, work in small areas.
Take the spirit level to make sure every stone is precisely level and lines up with the stones next to it as you arrange them together. For a flawless finish, employ spacers to keep the stone spaces uniform and make any modifications that are required.
Some stones will inevitably need to be trimmed to fit around architectural features or into corners. To make accurate and neat cuts, use a wet saw or tile cutter. When cutting stones, for adequate safety you must put on proper safety gear, which includes gloves and eyewear.
Use a rubber float to spread grout between the stones when the adhesive has dried out, which usually takes a day. Using a moist sponge, remove any extra grout and allow it to air dry. To improve the stone cladding's longevity and stain resistance, seal it once the grout has dried.
In Summary!
In conclusion, stone cladding brings up a world of creative design choices, whether you're redesigning your outdoors, adding a striking feature wall, or transforming your living space. Wall Cladding is an incredibly useful and versatile material that can be applied to many different design applications. Choosing the right stone can be a smart investment that can eventually raise the worth of your home. So, as you prepare to start the process of converting your walls with the classic elegance of stone cladding, we hope this step-by-step installation guide helps.
Let your creativity flow and experience the amazing results of this beautiful and long-lasting walling solution. Please don't hesitate to contact our team of experts if you have any questions or need help choosing the ideal walling stone for your space.
*Disclaimer: All information and advice given above in the blog are to the best of our knowledge. Please reconfirm at your end before execution.
