Stone is a raw material that looks fantastic on the wall. How to install it to delight its beauty for many years? Here is our short guide for DIY enthusiasts.
In the past in most Polish houses and apartments there were paneling, wallpaper and foamed polystyrene coffers. Fortunately, these interior trends have long ceased to be current – today a common solution is decorating walls with decorative stone. Why is it worth betting on this solution? Stone – due to the wide range of colors, shapes and textures – has a really huge decorative potential. It works well in a room decorated in both classic and modern style, attracting the eyes of every guest and household member.
What should you know before installing decorative stone on the wall? The scope of necessary works depends on the condition of the wall – it has to be smooth and clean before we start installing stone elements. How to prepare the substrate?
If there is wallpaper, tile or peeling, old paint on the wall – it is necessary to remove them, thoroughly clean the whole surface, apply a joint compound in places of defects and finally – apply a primer. In case of gypsum substrate, double priming is necessary.
When the substrate is 100% dry and clean, we can proceed to the next stage i.e. laying stone elements – always starting from the bottom of the wall and moving upwards. Apply the adhesive mortar on the wall (preferably with a notched trowel) and press the stone tile evenly. If you notice that the stone slides on the surface when pressed against the wall, thicken the adhesive mortar because it is probably too thin. If you want to perfectly cut individual elements in places which require it, it is worth using an angle grinder with a stone cutting disc
Depending on the effect we want to achieve, we can press the stone very close to each other or leave 7-12 mm joints which we fill with grout and spray with impregnator (however, it can impregnate the surface only after about 5-7 days when the stone wall is completely dry). Thanks to that it will be much easier to keep the stone clean.
During the installation temperature in the room should be between 5 and 28 degrees Celsius. Too low or too high temperature causes worse bonding of glue and stone tiles may start to fall off.
>> See also: Wallpaper for painting. Wall arrangement idea
Important tip: Before you start installing stone on the wall, you should carefully inspect each piece for possible damage and wipe the bottom with a wire brush to remove any dirt and make the surface of the tile rougher which will make it stick better to the glued surface.
If you don’t have any experience in finishing works, consider hiring a professional renovation team – then you will avoid common mistakes made by amateurs and the final effect will be really aesthetic.
