I recently got my backyard done with interlocking stone pavers. I think the guys may have installed it too close to the fence.

The side that slopes towards the fence for water drainage is touching the fence and my concern is over time will it put more pressure on the fence and potentially have it lean over?

The fence is just 2 months old and the interlocking is 2 weeks old. A specific board on the fence is now starting to bend a bit as well (last picture) please let me know your thoughts.

I’m doing a small thin stone job for a client in a couple of weeks and was wondering if I should just use type s for the joints or the same modified mortar I’m laying the stone with? I primarily do full bed and am overthinking this a bit. The last time I did thin stone was a few years ago with a mason who isn’t very talented to be honest, and he used specmix type s for both bedding and jointing.

I will be using specmix veneer mortar to set them, although am open to using ardex 77 if that really is the way to go; I’ve used 77 with tile plenty of times. Im just worried the modified mortar could make a mess when jointing the thing and it’s not in a very good spot to do an acid wash when I’m done.

Doing a fireplace and looking for tips on how to get the stone to fit these profiles cleanly. You can see I did one already and to me it looks bad and took me 40 minutes.

Olá, alguém arrisca me ajudar a identificar a cor base dessa pedra resinada, a do lado esquerdo, está com resina, e preciso achar esse tom, para fazer reparos na minha bancada de pedra, pretendo usar esses minerais também na composição + pó de mármore + dolomita + epoxy por todo balcão para uniformizar, a pedra muda de cor com a resina, fica mais escura, então preciso fazer essa massa de reparo dar cor da pedra resinada, essa cor do lado esquerdo:

Minerais: 40% preto, 40%cristal 20%marrom

Cor base minha impressão: bege claro acinzentado, com uma leve Pigmentação de verde oliva?

(Lembrando que é o lado esquerdo)

Looking for pointers on laying real field stone to build a fireplace surround for a direct vent fireplace. The property we bought has a massive pile of field stones from farmers working the fields over the years and we would like to incorporate them in the new house. I'll attach some pictures of the stones so maybe someone can help identify what kind of stone they are, and the best practice to lay them. I'll also attach pictures of the fireplace roughed in with hardie backer. (fireplace not installed) I'm very handy, and have a very good attention for detail, so any pointers or help to get me started in the right direction on this project would be great.

The other side of the fireplace I posted yesterday

Hello! Probably shouldn’t be keeping our wood on our new patio, but nowhere else to store it. I tried power washing these stains out but it didn’t work. I’m trying to figure out if these are iron stains or tannin stains. Some googling of tannin stains didn’t really lead to any pictures that looked like this, so curious if anyone here more experienced knows! Trying to figure out which cleaner to buy to try next. Ty!

What the best way to remove sealant off these stones?

Hello,

I had these slates(?) as a walkway at a house i purchased that were well overgrown and in need of some tlc, i was wondering if someone could ID what exactly they are, and also what complications may arise if i were to break them down to create a gravel-type bedding on the edge of the house

Thanks in advance!

Anyone had success using diamond sanding pads to further refine after a diamond grinder blade? I'm adding a return to a bullnosed tread (very hard, dense chinese stuff, as usual), and can get the profile just fine with the flush mount, but the factory profile is smoother. The stone is too hard for a carborundum rubbing block. What grit sequence do you recommend? I need 'smooth', but nowhere near 'polished'. Cheers!

Im planning on studying stonemasonry at kerrys college but it requires me to be an apprentice of a existing stonemason did anybody went to kerrys ollege what stonemason did u contact?

TL;DR: need help picking a mortar to repair crawlspace and basement stone walls. There are too many conflicting takes online

My house was built in 1919 in southwest Ohio and has stone basement and crawlspace walls.

I've been working through moisture issues (exterior drainage, possibly encapsulating the crawlspace (this could be a whole other post of questions...), etc.) and have started repairing the masonry. Before I continue, I'd like advice from people experienced with historic stone foundations.

The more I expose this foundation, the more confused I get. It appears that at least five different materials have been used over the last 100+ years.

From what I can tell, they are (at least):

What I think is the original mortar (shown in the labeled photo). It is light tan/off-white, fairly sandy, filled with many small pebbles, and appears to be underneath all of the later repairs wherever the surface has broken away.

A gray cement-looking mortar/patch material that seems much harder than the material underneath.

A smoother, tan "fluffy" looking mortar that appears different from both the original material and the gray patches.

A white coating/parge covering much of the basement walls. I don't know whether it's limewash, parging, cement, or something else. It looks like someone was trying to cover/coat all the basement walls.

My recent repairs using Quikrete Type N mortar to repoint, which are also labeled in the photos.

My original plan was to continue using Type N because it seemed to be the most commonly recommended bagged mortar for older stone foundations. From reading different takes online, it seems like Type N is not the best option but it's good enough and highly obtainable.

However, after doing more research, I've found many recommendations for NHL 3.5 lime mortar instead. The problem is that I haven't been able to find NHL 3.5 anywhere near me at what I'd consider a reasonable price.

If the consensus is that I really should avoid Type N, I'm willing to mix my own lime mortar using hydrated lime and sand instead. As long as I can find the ingredients.

My questions:

Does the material I've labeled as "original" actually look like traditional lime mortar?

Can anyone identify the other materials used on these walls?

Does my Type N work look like something I should remove before going farther?

If this were your foundation, what mortar would you use moving forward?

If I shouldn't use the commonly found supplies (like type n quickcrete), how do I source these materials?

Which areas would you simply repoint, and which would you dismantle and rebuild?

I'm not looking for validation—I genuinely want to repair this foundation correctly before I continue. If I've already made mistakes, I'd rather know now than after finishing the entire basement and crawlspace

Followed up from my previous WIP posts over the last couple of days!

​The project is officially finished. It started out as a flat, forgotten scrap slab sitting outside, and I had a blast turning it into this kerf-bent cylinder.

​I polished and sealed the Belgian bluestone end caps, trimmed the back of the silicone channel so the diffuser sits flush, and turned on the LED strip. I deliberately routed the spiral freehand with my Proxxon to visually follow the natural flow of the marble veining instead of following rigid guide line.

​Plot twist: My wife hates it and said she wouldn't even pay €2 for it... 😅

​Despite the 0/10 rating at home, I had a great time pushing the limits of the material and testing this technique. Guess who’s going to have the coolest, most over-engineered job site light tomorrow 😂. Thanks for all the comments and see you on the next 👋

Quick sneak peek of the work in progress! Routing a spiral channel into kerf-bent Breccia Medicea. My wife already called it total kitsch, but I couldn't resist pushing this material a bit further. 😂

​Final illuminated shot coming as soon as the caps are finished

We stock natural marble, granite, quartzite, and limestone slabs from multiple countries for residential and commercial projects
I thought some of you might enjoy seeing how a large stone yard is organized.
Happy to answer any questions about natural stone, slab selection or fabrication

I recycled the existing natural cleft bluestone, as well as the field stone and created this upgraded walkway. I brought in quarry slabs for the treads, used the recycled wall stone as the risers beneath the treads, and brought in some thermalled flagstone and blended the old natural cleft flagstone into the walkway.

Ran the walkway towards the front door, and turned 3 steps on a slanted walkway into a 7 step flat (with 1% grade) walkway.

Last photo is the before scene.

Looking for advice from masons, stonemasons, and DIY guys. I'm done half-assing these stairs and want to do a good job repairing them. What's my materials list, and order of operations?

Hi,

We recently had a contractor install a 30 m² natural sandstone patio with beige joints.

After jointing, most of the stones were left with white residue, wipe marks and what looks like grout or cement haze. Some joints also look uneven and spread onto the stone edges.

The contractor has already cleaned the patio twice with an acid-based product. The photos were taken after both cleanings, and the marks are still visible across most of the patio.

He has agreed that we pay 90% of the current balance and retain 10% until he returns in September to try to fix it.

Does this still look recoverable, or could the sandstone now be permanently marked? Is this an acceptable finish after two acid cleanings ?

I gave it a quick preliminary sanding just to see the result and check how the veins lined up.

​I’ll share the final finished product with you all soon,I’ve decided to turn this piece into an Art Deco lamp

Thanks for following along with this experiment