KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Remodeling an outdated fireplace with natural stone once was a hassle.
For starters, it meant cutting through floor joists and building a new support system to hold up the additional weight of thick, also called full, veneer - about 50 pounds per square foot. That led to nearly rebuilding the entire fireplace.
Now, thin natural stone and brick veneers that weigh only 15 pounds per square foot are available for interior face-lifts. This means simply covering what already exists.
Kimberly Robinett is using thin limestone in the 60-year-old, Westwood, Kan., home she and her husband, Trent, are overhauling. Rough stones arranged in a low arch frame the cook top in the kitchen. The veneer also covers the face of the fireplace in the family room.
"It can be manipulated like real rock and cut for size," says Ms. Robinett, an electrical engineer and co-owner of ACT Real Estate. "You can't do that with man-made stone."
The Robinetts plan to use thin brick for the wine bar they're building near the kitchen. The thin products are attractive and, even though they are expensive, will save the cost of foundation work, Ms. Robinett says.
Thin stone and brick come in the same colors and patterns of full-scale building materials because they are svelter versions of the natural products.
Special diamond-blade saws cut stones about inch thick (wall stone is typically 8 inches) and bricks inch (brick is usually 4 inches), says Terry LeSage, a spokesman for Sturgis Materials, a Kansas City, Kan., stone supply business that recently started carrying thin veneers.
Companies such as Robinson Brick, of Colorado, and Buechel Stone Corp., of Wisconsin, are expanding their production of the thin natural products.
"There's a lot of growth and interest," says Scott Watson, the manager of Midwest Block & Brick in Shawnee, Kan. "I think a lot of people gravitate to the stone more than the brick."
This winter Bill and Cathy Hughes, of Lake Quivira, Kan., spent about $2,400 on thin stone to cover the wall of white painted bricks that surrounds the fireplace in their family room.
"We didn't have to tear out a thing," Mr. Hughes says. "It was dated before, but now it cozies up the room."
Thin veneers also are used to enhance faades, chimneys and outdoor kitchens.
So far, people haven't had any problems with the exterior use of thin products except sandstone, Mr. LeSage says.
The porous material absorbs water, popping out pieces after a freeze-thaw cycle.
Masons like working with the thin product and are using it more often in new construction.
"When you're up on scaffolding a few stories high, you would rather have the lighter product," says Dan Brotherton, the owner of Brotherton Masonry in Oak Grove, Mo. "And you'd rather use it than manufactured stone - I don't like laying fake."
Lorie and Bill Endsley sought real stone for the faade of the house they were building last year in Overland Park, Kan. To them, man-made stone looked too smooth - and fake.
"I love the fossil imprints on the natural stone," Ms. Endsley says. "It's more expensive, but it's worth it."
Brick and stone veneers are available in the same colors and patterns as the full-size materials.
COMPARING STONE VENEERSTHIN NATURAL STONE VENEER
Thickness: inch
Material cost: $12.50 per square foot
Advantages: - Light enough so that it can be installed without a foundation - Can be custom-cut to specifications - Installation is less than thick stone veneer
Disadvantages:
- Costs more than thick natural stone and manufactured stone veneers
- Thin sandstone, because it absorbs lots of water, might pop out in freeze/thaw cycle if used externally
MANUFACTURED STONE VENEER
Thickness: 1 inches
Material cost: $4 to $10 per square foot
Advantages: - Cast concrete product looks similar to stone
- Less expensive material costs than thin natural stone veneer
- Less expensive installation costs than thick natural stone veneer
Disadvantages:
- Shows white on edges when it chips or breaks because color is applied on surface
- Texture and pattern don't vary like natural stone
- Cannot be custom-cut to specifications.
THICK (FULL) NATURAL STONE VENEER
Thickness: 4 inches
Material cost: $6 to $8 per square foot
Advantages:
- Can be custom-cut to specifications
- Gives a better insulating factor than a thin veneer
Disadvantages:
- Not convenient for remodeling because of its thickness and heft
- Installation costs more because of its weight
Sources: Sturgis Materials, Buechel Stone Corp.
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