thin stone veneer installation

Please read this prior to installation of thin flexible stone veneer sheets - This installation procedure is intended to serve as a guide only. It is not meant to replace the guidance and expertise of the professional masonry contractor. Rajasthan Slate & Stone Exports Inc. assumes that the chosen masonry contractor is aware of all local building codes and practices. It is also assumed that the masonry contractor consistently adheres to all relevant building codes and incorporates best practices into their scope of work.


Firstly	::	Choose the color from our online catalogue, visit http://www.stone-veneers.net/stone-veneers/thin_stone_veneer_colors.html

Next	::	Measurement: * FLATS: Multiply the length and the height of the coverage area to determine your overall square footage. Measure any openings, such as doors and windows, and subtract this square footage from the total. * CORNERS: Measure the height, or length, of the area requiring corners to determine the lineal footage of corners needed. * We generally pack our thin stone veneer sheets in 200 square feet / pack. The overall coverage area is also subject to the following issues: application pattern, chipping, breaking, cutting and grinding. If any of these issues are performed in excess, additional material will need to be considered.

Next		Get Ready - Installing flexible stone veneers is typically done by cutting the sheet using long nose tin snips and then adhering to a substrate using various adhesives. Because the flexible stone veneer sheets are waterproof they can be used in most of the wet locations. These materials hold up to most indoor/outdoor environments other than extreme low freezing conditions. Like real stone these flexible stone veneers can also be sealed using wood or stone sealers to bond and protect the surface while bringing out the colors. Please remember and it is very interesting to note that Thin Stone Veneer Sheets can be sealed with the same sealers which we use for slate, stone tiles, and wood surface. These days there are many sealers available in the market with various recommended applications. We suggest you to please pre-test the respective sealer for the desired lustre and penetration required before installation. Exterior Application Sealer Company - www.lantania.it

Next	::	Before installing the veneer sheets one by one….it is very important to clean, brush, and degrease that surface where we are going to apply the veneer sheets. Depending on the adhesive which we are using, it may be necessary to prepare the backside of the Stone Veneer sheet by sanding or scuffing to expose the fibreglass. We always recommend doing a test for one particular area with any suitable adhesive prior to final application. You know….flexible veneer sheets are also used for flooring after laminating on MDF & HDF & groove cutting with special machines. Interior applications of thin veneer are usually based on MDF, HDF, Ply-boards or real solid wood. Thin veneers can also be installed directly on concrete or Mortar wall, but first clean the surface well enough. We suggest that each sheet should be dry and suitably to be fit exactly where it will be placed on all surfaces besides numbering the sheets to track relocation before cutting and trimming will save your time.

Next	::	Before installing the thin veneer sheets on the surface it is very important to remove the air between the sheet and substrate, so to remove the air “A Hand Roller” plays an important role in the installation of the veneer sheets. To remove the air we should properly roll out the trapped air by rolling out the hand roller towards the edge of the sheet. Remember do not press too much hard while rolling out the hand roller as this may cause too much adhesive to come out. It is important to note that proper back-filling and good rolling techniques will result in a solid hard surface. Do not use non-catalyzing (water vapour type) cure adhesives where the substrate has a moisture barrier. Non-catalyzing adhesive will not cure properly if applied between non-porous materials.

Next	::	Natural flexible slate stone veneer sheets are very easy to cut with the help of any normal scissors but if large volume of sheets are to be cut then wet diamond marble cutting blades can be used with electric hand tools or machines. Natural flexible slate stone veneer can also be cut with the help of tungsten carbide wood cutting blades. Wood panel saw blades of Diamond & tungsten carbide mixture are the most suitable cutting tools for dry cutting. You can also cut it by thick sharp blade for small cutting applications. Safety & Precautions: We should take precautions whenever working with Thin Flexible Stone Veneer because it has fibreglass composition at the back side of the sheets. So ALWAYS use the correct & suitable gloves, goggles, and dust mask when cutting the sheets. If you are using the saw, it is always make sure to take proper precautions to cover your skin, your eyes and lungs from fibreglass dust. Whenever cutting the thin stone veneer sheets by saws, grinders, or sanders we should use exhaust equipments. Besides take care to avoid breathing the silica dust. Lot of dust come out from the thin Veneer sheets whenever cut, drilled, or abraded and this dust contains Silica which may cause cancer or delayed lung injury (Silicosis) if in-hailed. We suggest you to work outdoors, in a well ventilated area, or you can use mechanical ventilation while cutting the thin stone veneer sheets.

Next	::	Flexible Slate Stone Veneer can be twisted in both ways concave & convex as per the form of the curvature where we have to apply it, so It can be easily installed around round Pillars. It can be folded in the form of a role very easily. The Fibre glass & glue which we have used gives the top stone layer a very good strength so that while bending also we don’t see any crack on the stone layer. Fibre glass & glue gives the stone a very good bending strength. It is very interesting to know….that flexible slate stone veneer sheet can be bent or flexed to a radius of 3600 along the length but the width is not recommended for bending because of the nature of the different thickness of the individual items, the degree of radius varies with every item. Please take care of: The thickness of Flexible Slate Stone Veneer - 1 Millimetre to 1.75 Millimetre The approximate weight of Flexible Slate Stone Veneer – 1.50 to 2.00 Kgs. Per Sq. Mtrs.

Next	::	Flexible Slate Stone Veneer can be sticked or glued to various surfaces or various substrates with the help of famous glue known as PU (Polyurethane). This PU adhesive can be used to stick the sheets to any substrate but except to plastic, HDPE or Acrylic sheets. PVA (Poly Vinyl Acetate) Glue which is also known as White Glue adhesive is the cheapest alternative for wood substrates while installing the veneer sheets. D-3 & D4 PVA glues are readily available in the market these days. We suggest you to properly know the adhesives that you are using, by understanding the specifics of any adhesives you can save your time and money. Whichever adhesives you use it should be pre-tested before the installation of veneer sheets including consideration of moisture and temperature in the planned environment. If we are installing the thin stone veneer sheets in the out side areas we should consider the thermal expansion because the thin stone veneer sheets are only veneer which expand and contract the same as the substrate or delaminating may occur.

Next	::	We recommend the following Adhesives for sticking the sheets on the substrates: 1. Titebond "GREEN Choice" heavy duty construction adhesive. 2. Titebond "FAST GRAB" SOLVENT FREE FRP adhesive. 3. Premixed grout and tile adhesive. 4. Acrylic copolymer based tile adhesive. 5. Polyurethane wood glues and PU construction grade adhesives. 6. Wood, parquet, and outdoor carpet adhesives. 7. Highly modified thin-set. Use only after testing. Not recommended where high adhesion is required. 8. Thick latex or acrylic latex type tile adhesive. Use only where air drying can take place. Not recommended for exterior applications. 9. Epoxy. 10. Silicone (with primer only) 11. Construction grade multi-purpose adhesive, Liquid Nails type. 12. Polyester resin with filler. Please remember….for wet area applications especially in shower and bathroom applications, the use of “epoxy resin adhesive” are the best option. Besides it is to be noted that the backside of veneer sheets may require a filler type adhesive for some applications. The polyurethane wood glues work quite well for most applications to board materials by foaming slightly to fill the gaps. The polyurethane wood glues are not recommended for high moisture or wet application. Recommended websites for Glues & Sealers: www.akemi.com www.henkel.com www.lantania.it www.laticrete.com www.kleiberit.com www.mapei.com www.miraclesealants.com www.wacker.com The websites mentioned above are of MNCs, they are multi national in nature and their local dealer can be contacted in the area of concerned. The above websites can be visited for recommended glues for fibre glass polyester resin sheet application on MDF (Medium Density Fibreboard) & HDF (High-Density Fibreboard). These companies may recommend white emulsion polymer glue or polyurethane foaming glue or polyurethane double component non foaming glue depending on the hot press machine available with the user at the installation site.

Next	::	Installing the thin veneer sheets on the floor – It is important to be noted that thin veneers can be used for flooring with the proper adhesive and application techniques. As you know thin veneer sheets are not thick solid stone so it is not recommended for high traffic areas. Thin flexible stone veneer sheets can be used only for low traffic flooring areas such as residential bathrooms or where wet grip is required. Some colors of veneer offer better grip than others. For example Silver Shine or Zeera Green will have more textures then some of the other softer slate colors. Sealers will have an effect on the traction of the surface of each color. So it is advisable that respective sealer should be pre-tested prior to final installation when considering thin stone veneer for flooring purposes.

Next	::	Installing the thin veneer sheets on the wall – It is very interesting to know that while installing the thin stone veneer sheets on the existing tiles’ wall it saves your time & money because you don’t need to remove the existing tile surface, you can simply stick / adhere Veneer Sheets over it. You will also save time and labour by not renovating the existing tiles. As long as the tile is sound why remove it? With this type of resurfacing you can reduce the environmental impact of a total renovation AND keep the existing plumbing. Most standard brand name plumbing fixtures now have remodel kits which allow you to only change the fixtures, not the interior plumbing it’s an another time saver for you.

Next	::	Installing the thin veneer sheets on the doors – Before installing the thin flexible stone veneer sheets on the door it is very important for us to have well surface preparation, it means the door’s wood surface should be very much cleaned sanded and brushed before the thin stone veneer is to be installed. After this.....veneer sheet is laid out on the door surface and cut with sheet metal shears, here cutting is very simple because the veneer sheet is thin and flexible in nature. Please note that the back side of the thin veneer sheet should be scribed with a knife, After this..... we will apply the adhesive / glue with the help of toothed trowel, here we should use the heavy-duty construction adhesive. After this.....a hand roller is being used to press down the surface, you should start the rolling from the middle to push air out towards the edges of the veneer sheets but you should be careful that not to push too much so that the adhesive come out, or an air gap may form. After that.....the grout lines should be cleaned with a scraper and we will fill up grout.

Next	::	Important Notice: Prior to installation, the user should themselves determine the suitability of the product for its intended use and user alone assumes all risks and liability whatsoever in connection therewith.

Next	::	Maintenance of thin flexible stone veneer at the application: Cleaning during installing with adhesives and joint material - When laying and grouting of Stone Veneer it should not have any rests of glue or adhesive on the surface. If this still happens, clean with basic tile cement cleaner (heavily diluted, short exposure, pre-test). If oil or grease contamination is on the surface use Intensive Cleaner. A follow-up of the slate tile can only take place after complete dehydration. Slate stone has the specific drying process during the deformation. That makes it essential to protect the area to be sealed because dirt, quartz sand, and/or concrete ruins the surface of the stone which is often quite soft. Sealing of surface: By a single treatment with liquid sealer, almost all natural stone surfaces are easier to maintain. Not only water but also oil and grease can no longer penetrate into the surface. Sun spots are largely prevented and they are easier to remove. For light loads in the interior, we recommend sealing for walls, ceilings, furniture and kitchen fronts. This is good for all surfaces without too much use. To keep beauty forever: All natural stone surfaces, even if it is sealed, must be wiped regularly. As such we suggest using a shot floor cleaner in water (available in any hardware store) to clean and maintain in one operation. The material will not get exhausted, but with regular use keep more beautiful and rich in color. To maintain the gloss you should occasionally wipe with a gloss cleaner. For heavy wear surfaces you may need a special cleaner from time to time (available in any hardware store). This gives the surface an added protection and shine. In no case may leaching Lubricating soaps, abrasives, or strong acidic cleaners degreasing agents be used. Important: cleaners attack the polish and matte showed bodies - strong degreasing products are leaching or permanent maintenance care inappropriate. Remediation of old surfaces: Oil, oily contaminants and residues of floor care equipment can be easily removed with basic cleaning or intensive care products. Refreshing of faded surfaces is easy done with oils.