View Full Version : Faux or Light Stone Interior Wall
I am replacing a bathroom wall after a pipe leak. It was a typical knock-down texture over drywall, and I want to go with a different look.
Has anyone used these light or fake stone panels or individual stones to complete an accent wall?
Did you replace the drywall with concrete board or do you even need to?
A textured wall surface appeals to me after so many years with the same old style...
Thanks in advance!
I?ve done similar work. Not sure if it?s totally necessary but I?ve always cut the sheet rock out and installed concrete board. In my mind, if you?re going to be sticking tile or stone to something it just seems like I?d rather stick it to concrete. I did this in one of our bathrooms probably ten years ago and it?s still holding up fine today. It was even used by the wife and two teenagers on a daily basis most of those years.
I'm at the point now where I tacked new sheet rock up but, I have not finished it at all.
Did you just use mortar/adhesive to attach them to the board?
Yes. I just used regular mortar the first time and I did some work in a second bathroom and used some fancy, pre mixed, polymer based mortar of some sort. No problem with either install after many years.
Definitely better looking and fancier and more durable than regular sheet rock if you ask me. Heck, I?d rather do stone or tile work and grout and what not than deal with sheet rock and texturing and paint anyways.
Also, as with anything these days, if you haven?t done this type of thing before then YouTube is your friend. There are a crap ton of videos. Maybe watch some of the work that the professionals do and not so much average Joe.
Indoors: I'd use concrete board if attaching stone veneers of any kind. Make sure you put a plastic barrier behind the concrete board, e.g. attached to the studs as a vapor barrier.
Indoors use a fortified thin-set mortar and mix some polymer additive in it. Mortar is a pretty weak bond in of itself, especially for a thin-rock lay and usually requires a bunch of steps.
If you're just doing short runs of wall tile (not more than say 3 feet high) then you can just attach it to sheet rock and use regular thinset. Let your first row set up completely in either case, and spread it out over a few days so you don't have lower wall runs wet-attached supporting a lot of weight from higher runs.
This will be a first-time with this particular product but, I'm usually pretty handy with most of the homeowners craft...electrical, plumbing, etc...
Youtube will probably be my friend.
This particular wall is actually pretty small, 66" x 84". It may be a good one to experiment on as it is in a lower-level powder room that gets zero-use.
Sounds like a good candidate to learn on if you ask me.
Good luck. I bet it will turn out awesome.
I would consult the manufacturer of whatever product you choose on what the proper attachment method would be. They may also recommend a proper backer board as well.
Shockingly, the manufacturers are all over the "board" on this.
It's probably a sales technique as both are "safe" to use.
To be safe, I'll probably just pull the drywall and replace it with a concrete board.
Thanks for the help and ideas!
This thread needs a photo tutorial.
Looks cool. Can you set your phone on it to watch YouTube while you use the toilet?
I made some progress on the wall today.
My saga began with a pinhole leak in a hot water line. It had been leaking for a while as the basement floor became a pool.
Tracing the water back from the basement ceiling led me to this wall. It runs in-between the laundry room and a guest bathroom on the first floor.
I ended up cutting a hole in the wall to get to the water source.
https://i.imgur.com/bozybKS.jpg
I don't believe paint removal is done this way.
https://i.imgur.com/6GTcD1K.jpg
A Sharkbite coupling was the temporary fix.
https://i.imgur.com/NUAmX7h.jpg
Eventually, I had to remove the sheetrock from both walls as they were saturated.
https://i.imgur.com/9JkUAYP.jpg
I replaced both water lines with Pex.
A friend urged me to use the largest piece of sheetrock I could handle to minimize the seams and subsequent finishing. I purchased 2 twelve foot sheets and cut them down to 10'. I next had to get the sheetrock into position to screw it in. A wise person suggested that I place a 2x4 horizontally a little more than 4' down from the ceiling. This would allow me to place it on this ledge and push it into place. Way easier said than done. A 10' sheet carried by one guy and placed into position would have produced a hilarious video. Pain and exhaustion didn't quite win and I got it into position.
https://i.imgur.com/FLLh5Cn.jpg
I ended up placing a board and batten setup over the sheetrock instead of trying to match the texture with the other walls and ceiling.
https://i.imgur.com/8zziHot.jpg
And before you ask, I did end up ripping up the laminate floor and underlayment and replacing that.
The floor in the guest bathroom was oak and had not been finished yet as someone couldn't figure out the proper stain color. Unfinished oak and water make friends quickly and the oak swells to show the result of their getting together. A Festool Rotex sander saved the day and I was able to get it smoothed out. (Waited for it to dry before I began any of this.)
Next, I sheetrocked the bathroom wall. Not a good move as the split face stone I wanted to apply does much better over cement board or Hardie Backer. Ripped the sheetrock off and installed the Hardie.
I painted the remaining walls and started installing the stone today...
https://i.imgur.com/veQ73yT.jpg
It continues on...Enable GingerCannot connect to Ginger Check your internet connection
or reload the browserDisable in this text fieldEditEdit in GingerEdit in Ginger?Should've just used some FlexSeal and been done with it...
Sent from somewhere...
Looks good. That was a serious void in that pipe
At least it wasn't in the upper level.
Sent from somewhere...
Forgot this one...
This was the inside of the offending pipe:
https://i.imgur.com/d8GN2l9.jpg
ChickNorris
05-15-2020, 20:39
2x4 ledge is how I install cabinetry/sheet rock when I'm solo too.
Big project. Looks nice.
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