What does Cast Stone mean ?

Definition

Cast Stone as defined by The UK Cast Stone Association and The British Standard is “any material made with natural aggregates and cementitious binder that is intended to resemble and be used in a similar way to natural stone”.

Terminology

The material is referred to by many different terms such as precast stone, reconstructed stone, reconstituted stone, artificial stone, artstone, synthetic stone or manufactured stone. This can prove confusing to people from outside the industry but essentially the product is a man-made masonry material used for architectural features in or around buildings.

Features

Cast Stone has been used in the UK since Georgian times and is a durable material with properties that often surpass those of quarried stone. This popular material can have superior compressive strength, more even colour, lower moisture penetration and better textural consistency than quarried natural stone - and usually at a much more cost effective price.

Quality

Not all Cast Stone is the same. Cement content, cement quality, aggregate quality and curing regime have significant impact on the durability of the product. Equally robust packaging is vital to ensure the cills, lintels or coping stones arrive on site in a pristine condition.

Packaging

CastStone.com products are delivered carefully packed on wooden pallets with polystyrene used to separate the individual units. All units have integral water repellent additives to combat water absorption and most units are vapour cured to produce excellent corners / arrises.

For further details of types of units available, or to start putting together your next Cast Stone order please visit the Cast Stone Shop

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