Everything Outdoors of Tulsa landscaping installs manufactured stone in all shapes, sizes, and looks. It is an alternative to natural stone and in most cases is comparable or less of a price point to install than its natural counterpart.
If we were crunching numbers, we would venture to guess that nine out of ten of the stone veneers you see today–that is, every chimney facing, every Olive Garden and Denny’s siding, every interior stonework feature–will be made of manufactured or artificial stone veneer. Unless you live in a traditional locale with very old buildings, and where real stone is the norm, it’s mostly going to be manufactured stone.
First let’s define a few basics. The term manufactured stone means that it is not quarried directly from the Earth. Real stone is just that: igneous rock that comes in wildly varying sizes and colors. The term veneer means that it is a decorative or decorative/functional surface applied on the surface of the actual load-bearing structure. So, a fireplace composed of brick or cement block might have veneer stone on the surface to give the illusion that the fireplace is made of stone.
What’s Inside Manufactured Stone?
Manufactured stone is nothing new; it’s been around for age. But Broken Arrow / Tulsa veneer stone companies in the last three decades have been refining their manufactured veneer “recipe” so that it looks remarkably like the real thing–even upon close examination.
Most manufactured veneer is composed of Portland cement, aggregates, and iron oxides. The cement gives veneer its stability; the aggregates help to lighten the weight of the stone; and the iron oxides provide pigments to color the stone.
