Artificial stone has firmly entered into modern fashion trends for exterior and interior design.

Good quality final product, coupled with thoughtful marketing policy, is capable of generating good profits.

Now we will look at what equipment is needed for the production of artificial stone, as well as what technologies are used for its production.

Production of artificial stone

To organize this business, you first need to select the appropriate premises for production. Basic requirements for production space include:

• Heating available. The temperature in the production room must be at least 15 degrees Celsius.
• Good ventilation in the room, as well as the presence of an exhaust hood.
• Three-phase electrical supply, to ensure equipment connection.
• Cold and hot water, as well as the presence of wastewater in the room.
• The open storage area must have a canopy to protect the products from the weather.
• Availability of normal access roads.

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Line for the production of artificial stone - includes the following equipment:

• Vibrating table – for vibration processing of liquid material in molds.
• Concrete mixer – for mixing the components of the molding sand.
• Vibrating sieve– to prevent large fractions of constituent components from entering the molding sand and ensuring a high-quality final product.
• Molds - for pouring molding sand and giving a certain appearance and invoices of the final products.

If at the very beginning of organizing this business, a large volume of products is implied, then the production of artificial decorative stone must be supplemented with the following equipment:

• Additional concrete mixer – for tinting.
• Packaging machine – for packaging finished products.
• Bunker – for storing cement and other dry components.
• Loader – for loading finished packaged products onto transport.

If you decide to open own production artificial stone, the listed equipment can be purchased separately.

Although you can also buy it as a ready-made line, optimized for certain volumes.

The artificial stone production technology itself consists of the following processes:

• Preparing the potting mixture. To do this, you need to mix with water one part of cement and three parts of sand, sifted on a vibrating sieve in a concrete mixer. The resulting mass has the consistency of thick sour cream.
• Add dye. In some industries, to reduce the cost of finished products, the dye is not added to the total mass of the mixture, but is mixed in a separate batch.
• The resulting mixture is poured into molds for the production of artificial stone, up to half their volume. In the case of two-component production, where one part of the mixture is not colored, and dye is added to the other, the colored mixture is poured first.
• Forms filled up to half, shaken on a vibrating table, to remove air bubbles from the mixture and compact it.

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• The next process is reinforcement. On top of the first poured layer, a mesh made of metal is placed in the molds. It serves to give strength to the finished product.
• The second layer of the mixture is poured. In the case of two-component production, the second layer is an uncolored solution.
• The completed forms are shaken again on the vibrating table. After completing the procedure, it is recommended to apply stripes onto the poured mixture using a shaped spatula. This will give the stone additional adhesion to adhesive solutions during installation.
• The forms are moved to drying. The solution hardening time is 12 hours. After this, the finished stone is removed from the molds and kept in a warehouse for a couple of weeks for the stone to gain strength and final drying.

As you can see, the production of artificial stone from concrete is a rather labor-intensive process, but not complicated.

If you decide to produce stone from a cement-sand mixture, you should take care to have the required number of ready-made molds in production, since after pouring, the molds will not be available for reuse for 12 hours while the solution hardens in them.

Stone made using this technology is suitable for interior and exterior cladding.

Also, artificial stone is made from gypsum. The production technology is not very different from the production of stone from concrete, but it has several differences.

Thus, in the production of gypsum stone, some manufacturers use not steel, but polyurethane, fiberglass or propylene mesh as a reinforcing layer.

It is worth noting the fact that the production of artificial stone from gypsum requires a smaller number of free forms, since the hardening time of the gypsum mixture is several tens of minutes.

After the hardening time has passed, the finished stone can be removed from the mold and reused.

Stone made using this technology is only suitable for interior cladding of buildings.

Artificial stone production lines

In the production of artificial stone, depending on the technology, seeded river sand, Portland cement, gypsum-alabaster mixtures, dyes, plasticizers, neutral fillers and reinforcing components are used.

The production itself requires constant availability of a considerable amount of water, so the presence of running water and sewerage is mandatory.

If you decide to try your hand at this business, the first thing you need to do after selecting a premises is to purchase the necessary equipment.

Concrete mixers:

1. "RS-200"– for small productions.

• kneading time and volume of the finished mixture – 5 min./150 l.
• power consumption – 1.5 kW/380V.
• cost - about 40,000 rubles.

1. "RS-300"– for medium-sized industries.

• kneading time and volume of the finished mixture – 5 min./230 l.
• power consumption – 2.2 kW/380V.
• cost - about 45,000 rubles.

Vibrating table:

1. "VSV-100"– for small productions.

• table dimensions – 800x1000x800 mm.
• power consumption – 0.25 kW/220-380V.
• cost - about 23,000 rubles.

1. "VIBROID 1000"– for medium-sized industries.

• table dimensions – 1500? 770? 950mm.
• power consumption – 1 kW/380V.
• cost - about 52,700 rubles.

Vibrating sieve:

1. "VS 8M".

• productivity – 10 tons per hour.
• power supply – 380V.
• cost - about 95,000 rubles.

Forms for filling:

Estimated cost – from 2800 to 6600 rubles.

Video about the production of artificial stone

Artificial stone is a material that was obtained not naturally, but artificially, and consists of unnatural substances.

Such material does not carry any value and is a simple decorative element. The main advantages of such a stone will be beauty, light weight, low cost, as well as ease of manufacture and, accordingly, inexpensive production. The technology of such production is carried out using the simplest equipment, but at the same time, the strength that such artificial stone provides is in no way inferior to, and may even exceed, the strength of products made from natural stones.

Advantages of the stone

Decorative stone is very popular. The main advantage of manufacturing is the simple and cheap materials that are used in the production of simple concrete. It turns out that raw materials for cooking can always be easily and quickly found, and this will not be a big problem.

When using decorative stone, you can get any colors you want, you can make any shape and make any dream come true. Another great advantage is that the base of the decorative stone will never fade under the influence of sun rays, therefore this material is often chosen for finishing the facade of a house. Not only does the house become beautiful, but it is also much better protected from humidity and other weather conditions, as well as from minor damage. A huge advantage is that such work can be carried out at any time of the year, since the stone is unpretentious in construction.

The technology for the production of decorative stone allows us to obtain products that cannot be distinguished from natural ones, and at the same time, for production we use such simple materials as sand, cement and chemical additives, from which we can create any color and any pattern. For this reason, designers and decorators love to work with this material.

The production of a material such as artificial stone is based on cement, to which fine or coarse filler, sand or crushed stone is added, respectively, and chemical additives are added, thanks to which all the elements bond with each other and form a strong connection. Mineral pigment is responsible for obtaining color, thanks to which resistance to fading and moisture appears.

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Production methods

You can make artificial stones using a silicone mold on our own.

The technology for manufacturing decorative stone is based on two methods, such as vibration casting and vibration pressing. These two methods have their advantages. For example, the vibration casting method requires less expensive equipment; setting up and using such equipment is much simpler. There is no steaming in production and more products can be produced per shift. And another plus is that the surface of the product is of higher quality and the color of the product is more saturated, since less water is needed to make concrete.

The advantages of vibrocompression will be the production of products that will be slightly cheaper in cost, and there will also be more mechanization in production than manual labor.

In general, the technology for producing artificial stone has its advantages. This is also light, unlike natural stone, it can be used for finishing the outside of a building and the inside, it does not require special processing, the stone is very easy to install and no additional protection is needed for it.

If you need production with an average quantity of products, then it is better to use vibration casting technology, and if you want to produce a lot more products, then you should choose vibration pressing technology.

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Vibratory casting technology for the production of decorative stone

Let's talk about manufacturing technology using vibration casting, during which the stone is obtained. First, you need to decide what equipment will be needed for production.

Of course, you will need a vibrating table in order to process concrete products. It is used in both large and small enterprises. The types of vibrating table can be different, it will depend on what products will be manufactured.

You will definitely need a mixer, with which you can obtain a high-quality solution.

The next piece of equipment is a vibrating sieve, since for decorative stone it is very important to use well-sifted filler.

And the last mandatory equipment will be molding equipment for making good and beautiful product shapes.

There is also other additional equipment, but we do not consider it, since it is used in vibrocompression technology on a large scale of production.

We have decided on the equipment and now we will directly consider the process of producing decorative stone. The procedure will be as follows. First you need to prepare the concrete mixture. To do this, the necessary components, such as cement, dye, filler and additives, are taken and mixed in a concrete mixer.

Then, on a vibrating table, the concrete is placed into molds and compacted into them.

Then the products are kept for two days in natural conditions, that is, no complex actions need to be performed. Temperature, humidity and breathability should be normal.

The next step is to separate the products from the molds on a special table.

Well, then the finished products are sorted, selected of the required quality, without chips or scratches, and placed on pallets, which are taken to the warehouse.

We should also talk about molds for the production of products. Molds for cast products must be of high quality. Previously, when artificial stone was not so popular, they mainly used rigid forms made of concrete, plaster, wood and metal. Nowadays, many new technologies, new equipment, improved materials have appeared, so casting molds can now be of any texture, any size and any geometry.

It becomes clear that with good equipment and skillful hands, it is not at all difficult to organize the production of such products from decorative stone. The main thing is to follow the procedure and have high-quality materials, and of course, decent labor.

If you choose the idea of ​​producing such a stone for your business, you will not go wrong, because it will pay for itself very quickly due to high demand. But, of course, if you just need to use the stone for yourself, for example, to lay out a path in your summer cottage with paving stones or make a staircase in your house, then it is best to hire professionals and buy ready-made products, since it will be possible to make stone alone at home without equipment problematic. Therefore, to save your time, money and nerves, it is better to entrust this work to specialists. They will quickly and efficiently complete everything in a short time, since such work usually does not cause any difficulties.

Today, artificial stone is a very popular building material. It is widely used both for cladding the facades of houses, and for laying paths in areas, creating tiles and even fence elements.

Manifold color range, greater strength and lower price make this material more accessible and more popular both among professionals and among people simply planning a renovation. Due to the fact that the price of equipment for the production of decorative stone is quite affordable, the technologies are not secret, the production of artificial stone can be an excellent way to develop your own business.

A stone of your own production will be cheaper than a purchased one, and the owner can select and improve the texture and quality on his own. All you need is to understand the details: what material and how much you need to purchase, what forms are needed for the production of decorative stone, purchase a convenient room for production and the entire set of required equipment.

Production room

Like any other, the stone manufacturing process requires compliance with certain technical and thermal conditions.

So the area of ​​the main production premises can be from fifty to one hundred square meters.

There must be a warehouse for storing raw materials separately from the workshop.

The room temperature should not exceed 25 degrees. Heating can only be carried out in the production workshop. Lighting should be both general and local in those places where machines for the production of decorative stone are located. The premises must have running water and a sewerage system. Be sure to install a high-quality ventilation system to ventilate the workshop.

Necessary equipment

When the room is ready and equipped in compliance with all safety standards, the next step is to choose what equipment will be needed for the production of decorative stone. The following devices are often used:

• Vibrating table (cost from 50,000 to 70,000 rubles).
• Concrete mixer (5,000 – 13,000 rubles).
• Electronic scales (RUB 15,000 – 25,000).
• Several desktops.
• Containers for bulk materials.
• Construction mixer (2,500 – 5,000 rubles).
• Forms for stone, which you can purchase or make yourself.
• Pallets for molds.
• Various small tools such as shovels, scoops, wheelbarrows, trowels, etc.

A vibrating table is needed to remove air bubbles from the solution using vibration. You can buy such a table or make it yourself according to the drawings and separately purchase a vibration motor for moving the table.

You can also make polyurethane molds yourself, which will save money at the beginning of production. But the quality of the form itself directly affects the properties of the product, its durability and aesthetics. Therefore, it is better not to skimp on the quality of polyurethane. Experts advise using a product from German and American manufacturers.

Raw materials

It is important to decide on the material from which the stone will be made: gypsum or concrete, and then purchase all the necessary mixtures. You may need:

• The cement is white and grey.
• Sand (river or quartz).
• Pigment and dye.
• Plasticizers for gypsum and concrete.
• Gypsum, gypsum polymer.
• Chemical mixtures.
• Fiber fiber.

Artificial stone can be painted in various colors. To do this, use a compressor with spray nozzles and an airbrush. You can also use brushes of various shapes to achieve the desired texture and color. The pigment can be added both to the finished surface of the stone and to the mixture itself.

Finished products

The purchased equipment for the production of decorative stone can be used for personal needs or for the manufacture of products for sale. It is advisable to pack the finished stone to protect it from damage during transportation and storage in warehouses. It is better to pack in cardboard boxes, laying the stone in layers. Each layer must be separated with a layer of cardboard or packaging film.

Production technology

Decorative stone can be made in several ways. The most common are vibration casting and vibration pressing. Both methods are good in their own way and have a number of special advantages.

Equipment for the production of decorative stone is cheaper to produce using the vibration casting method than to purchase a vibration press. This technique is easier to work with and configure. Manufacturing this way will retain more moisture in the product, since there is no need to steam the stone; As a result, the finished product turns out to be more saturated in color. The vibration casting process takes place in several stages:

• Preparation of a mixture of cement, pigments, modifying additives and mineral fillers. The solution can be mixed either with a hand-held construction mixer or with a special concrete mixer.
• Pouring the solution into ready-made molds installed on a vibrating table. The product must be in the mold for at least 48 hours.
• Separating the product from the mold, removing chips, packaging the finished material.

The brick making press, in turn, makes it possible to produce material that is less expensive in cost. This process can be almost completely mechanized, which will increase productivity. Thanks to this choice, the future owner of the production can decide for himself which technology will be used depending on the expected productivity.

Natural stone has been used in building and interior decoration for thousands of years. However, now such material is very expensive. However, there is a way out. You can make an artificial stone with your own hands, and it will be practically no different from natural stone. The price of such a product will be much lower than a natural one.

Using stone in interior decoration allows you to achieve completely unexpected results. You can decorate the room in the style of a knight's castle, a fireplace framed by slate will look especially attractive, and columns trimmed with stone will be beautiful.

However, with all its wealth of shapes and colors, natural stone also has disadvantages. These include:

• high price;
• heavy weight, not every wall can withstand such additional load;
• significant transportation costs.

In order to be able to use stone in interior decoration and overcome the described disadvantages, the technology for manufacturing artificial stone was created.

Cladding using artificial stone

Externally, natural and artificial stone are practically indistinguishable, at the same time, the latter is devoid of all the disadvantages of natural stone and can be made with an imitation of any natural stone, and even its texture is repeated. According to the type of surface, artificial stone can be:

• chipped, as if beaten with a hammer and having an uneven surface and edges;
• sawn, having smooth, even edges;
• rubble, reminiscent of ordinary natural boulders;
• arbitrary, embodying the designer’s fantasies in form and surface;
• decorative.

For specific design tasks, a wide variety of surfaces may be required - for finishing a fireplace, arches, columns. Stones with elements may be required marine theme, for example, with traces of shells. So, when making artificial stone with your own hands, you can get exactly what is needed according to the requirements of the plan for finishing a specific surface. One of the most popular types of stone is slate.

What is artificial stone made from?

Strange as it may seem, there are several methods for making stone. different options. One technology uses cement, fine sand, and water. According to another, they are made of plaster or alabaster. There is a manufacturing option when using as a binder polymer materials. Therefore, the composition of artificial stone for production on your own can be determined based on the available materials and capabilities for producing stone.
The entire manufacturing procedure is not overly complicated and can be performed by anyone with some effort and careful adherence to technology. This doesn’t even require special conditions; work can be done directly in the apartment. Therefore, the material proposed below can be perceived as a kind of instruction for making artificial stone.

Manufacturing process

The main materials for making stone, as noted above, are cement and gypsum, or alabaster. In any option, using gypsum or cement, making artificial stone with your own hands begins with selecting an initial sample and creating a mold in which the stone will be cast in the future.

Having several such models, you can quickly produce the required amount of stone. As a model stone, it would be justified to purchase several stone samples of suitable shape and size in a store.

Although you can also use commercially available ready-made silicone models. They are a ready-made kit for making artificial stone.

How to make a model

The production of the mold begins with the selection of a sample, for the role of which a stone of suitable shape and size is selected. Silicone is used for the mold in which the stone will be cast later. Make or use a suitable sized box, slightly larger than the size of the sample stone. This box will serve as formwork.
It and the selected stone must be coated with a thick layer of grease or some other lubricant. The stone is placed at the bottom of the box. Several such formworks and forms need to be made to increase productivity.

After this, silicone is poured into the formwork. To compact it, tamp it with an ordinary paint brush moistened with a soap solution. For the latter, you can use regular Fairy. After filling the mold with silicone, the surface is leveled with a spatula moistened with Fairy.
The poured forms dry for two to three weeks, after which the formwork is disassembled, the sample stone is removed, and ready-made silicone molds for artificial stone are obtained. If there are small defects on the surface, they are sealed with silicone.
True, here too there is an alternative option for making a mold, but we can return to this a little later, after we fully consider the technology for manufacturing artificial stone that has been started.

Extraction from cement

At this stage, the work is performed in several passes. Initially, cement and sand are mixed for the first layer in a ratio of 3:1, everything is mixed until a homogeneous mixture is formed. The desired color is obtained by adding dyes, approximately 2-3% of the amount of cement, but this must be established experimentally. Add water to the finished mixture and stir until it is approximately thick like sour cream; the dyes are mixed with water.

The resulting mixture is poured into the mold about halfway and compacted by tapping and shaking for about a minute. Then a metal mesh is placed on top of the finished mortar to give additional strength to the stone and filled with a second layer of mortar. To save money, you don’t have to add dye to the second batch of concrete.

After pouring, make small grooves on the top layer of the mortar with a nail or any stick for better adhesion to the wall during installation. As can be seen from the described technology, it is quite simple and allows you to do without special equipment for the production of artificial stone.

After twelve hours, the stone is removed from the mold and left to dry and gain strength for two weeks. After removing the stone, the mold is washed with Fairy; this procedure must be repeated after each pour.

Manufacturing from gypsum

It should be noted that the production of artificial stone from gypsum is carried out in the same sequence. There are only nuances related to the fact that gypsum hardens quickly. Therefore, it must be prepared as much as is needed to make one stone, then a new portion must be diluted. To slow down the setting, citric acid can be added to the plaster.

The holding time for the material to harden will be different; this procedure takes several tens of minutes. Before pouring gypsum into the mold, it is necessary to lubricate it with oil so that the finished stone can be easily removed from the mold.

If you have the desire and opportunity, then using the described technology you can organize the production of artificial stone with your own hands. Moreover, stone made from cement can be used for both interior and exterior decoration.

Artificial stone coloring

When making the stone, we added dye to its composition. However, you can simply paint it after making it. This requires special paint and a brush of any size. The painting process is as follows:

1. it is necessary to wipe the surface of the stone with a clean rag and remove sand, dust, cement;
2. apply an even layer of paint to the front surface with a brush;
3. After the paint has dried, a second and third layer can be applied to achieve the desired shade.

Alternative manufacturing options and training materials

Now you can consider the option of how to make an artificial stone without using a sample and silicone. All this is shown in the video:

As can be seen from the above example, you can do without any expensive materials at all.
It should be noted that the stone can be made using ready-made kits. They include a ready-made polyurethane mold. How to make such products with its help, in the following video:

Artificial stone, installation

Artificial stone can be mounted on virtually any surface, including wood and plasterboard. When installing stone on wood, special surface preparation will be required; additional moisture insulation and sheathing will be necessary. At the same time, when installing stone on brick or concrete, no additional work is required, only leveling the surface.

Fastening the stone to the wall can be done using cement mortar or using special adhesive solutions or special types glue. Installation can be done with or without jointing.

When installing with jointing, a gap remains between the stones; its size should not exceed 2.5 centimeters, which is then filled with grout. This option is more economical, but for some types of stone laying with jointing is simply not suitable; they need to be laid only completely.

Before installation begins, the stones are laid out on the floor and their best location is selected, adjusting to each other if necessary.

Laying stone begins with corner elements, then around window and door openings. And only after this the installation of horizontal rows is carried out.

The process of installing stone can be seen in the video:

It should be noted that additional care for surfaces lined with artificial stone is not required. As a protective measure, you can protect the wall from excessive moisture. This is done using special compounds. After application, they make the stone water-repellent.

Do-it-yourself artificial stone is an excellent opportunity to achieve very impressive results in interior decoration by using such an extraordinary material. And you can do all this yourself without significant costs or the use of special equipment.

Artificial stone has been known since time immemorial: ordinary brick and hardened lime mortar are also artificial stones. But only in our days has artificial stone been recognized as the No. 1 material for
interior decoration and amateur landscape design. The reason is that using modern materials and technologies, you can make artificial stone with your own hands. At least some of its varieties, because There are many types of artificial stone.

What for?

Natural stone is an expensive and, oddly enough, capricious material. Take a look at the picture. A traditional Japanese Tobiishi garden and an equally traditional European rock garden are more expensive than the villa shown on the left. For tobiishi, the blocks must be selected in accordance with the sacred requirements of Zen, and the slate slabs for the rock garden must be selected according to the design conditions. And the stone is suitable only from certain deposits, based on the requirements of strength and durability. And you need to bring it in such a way that it doesn’t turn into rubble along the way.

Sawn or chipped finishing stone is cheaper, although still very expensive. And it’s expensive to work on it: not tiles, each one needs to be tried on and selected according to the location. And it heavily loads the wall or ceiling - it’s heavy. You can’t prick or saw through thin layers – it will crack and is fragile.

In terms of mechanical properties and durability, artificial stone can surpass wild natural stone and is certainly not inferior to it even when made at home. In addition, it has important advantages:

• It can be made in thin tiles, which reduces the weight of the object several times without losing strength.
• If the colors and textures of the surface are rich or unique, it can be made of a standard shape and size in plan or shaped exactly in place.
• Can be manufactured at the site of use, which eliminates transportation waste.
• Can be produced immediately smooth to a shine, eliminating the cost of sawing, grinding and polishing.
• Can be manufactured irregular shape, completely imitating rubble stone, but of a predetermined size and configuration.

Additionally: imitation of stone using polymer binders (see below) produces thermoplastic products, which, after manufacturing, can be bent, molded, and connected to each other without seams.

What is he good for?

There are countless types of artificial stone products. It is used to line walls, internal and external; it is used to make decorative elements for interiors and furniture, kitchen sinks, window sills, countertops and entire furniture, see fig. In the latter case, the thermoplasticity of polymer artificial stone is used.

In addition, you can make figurines, trinkets, and souvenirs from it at home. There are technologies that allow you to get the effects of tiger, cat and snake eyes. There are craftsmen who make netsuke from artificial stone, which Japanese experts do not immediately distinguish from real ones. But all this already relates to the field of jewelry craftsmanship, but you can get the hang of making an artificial decorative stone with your own hands that is unusually similar to labradorite, pink eagle or serpentinite. It seems that charoite with malachite of Danila the 21st century master has not yet been reached, but, keeping in mind the capabilities of the material, this is a profitable endeavor.

Types of decorative artificial stone

According to the source materials and manufacturing methods, artificial stone is divided into the following types:

1. Ceramic – during the manufacturing process, firing takes place at a certain temperature. Production requires large areas, trained personnel and significant energy consumption.
2. Gypsum molded (cast) – production is possible at home with minimum costs, but is only suitable for interior decoration, because not frost-resistant. The minimum temperature in the production room is +18 degrees Celsius.
3. Concrete (cement-sand) molded , left in Fig. – the cost price is slightly higher than gypsum, because The mold resource for concrete is less, but is also suitable for production at home or in a small utility room. Frost-resistant, production is possible at +12 Celsius and above.
4. Freeform reinforced concrete (monumental) – manufactured individually, most often at the place of use. The free-forming method is used to make artificial boulders, cobblestones, and natural-looking slabs.
5. Polyester with hot-curing mineral filler (in the center in the figure) - in decorative and mechanical qualities it can surpass natural analogues, but the compound hardens at elevated temperatures in a vacuum, therefore it is unsuitable for home or small-scale production.
6. Cold Cure Cast Acrylic - suitable for home production under the same conditions as gypsum. If hardening is carried out on a vibration stand (see below), the totality of its qualities is close to that of a hot-cured stone. Thermoplastic at 175-210 degrees, allows additional molding after casting without loss of quality of the finished product.
7. Liquid artificial stone prepared on a gel acrylic binder - gel coat (gel coat, gel coating). The mechanical properties are somewhat inferior to cast ones, because A smaller proportion of mineral filler can be introduced into the gel, but at home, spatial products of complex configurations can be formed using gelcoat.

About acrylic stone

The main advantages of acrylic stone are the complete absence of pores and chemical resistance. In everyday life, this provides excellent sanitation and hygiene: the moisture absorption of acrylic stone is about 0.02% by weight; for comparison, for granite - 0.33% and for marble - 0.55%. Acrylic stone can be washed with any household detergent.

The second, already decorative advantage is the combination of viscosity with strength, which is more typical for plastics than for mineral materials, which makes it possible to make stone wallpaper. Industrially produced acrylic stone slabs have a thickness of 6, 9 and 12 mm, but this is due to its subsequent transportation. For on-site use, acrylic stone can be made in sheets 3-4 mm thick. Of course, such sheets require very careful handling, but if a suitable shape is available, they can be made to the full height of the wall.

And finally, decorative artificial stone with an acrylic binder has low thermal conductivity combined with high heat capacity. This gives a feeling of living warmth when touched, to the point that you can sit naked in an unheated empty bathtub made of liquid stone without experiencing discomfort.

About quartz artificial stone

Among the hot-curing liquid stone, quartz artificial stone stands out (on the right in the figure with stone samples) - ground vein quartz (filler) with a binder made of polyester resin PMMM (polymethyl methacrylate). Its thermal strength is limited to 140 degrees, but in mechanical properties and durability it surpasses the best of natural stones. Let's give some data for comparison; The values ​​for rapakivi granite and marble are indicated in parentheses separated by a fraction:

• Impact resistance DIN, cm – 135 (63/29).
• Bending strength, kg/sq.cm – 515 (134/60).
• Compressive strength, kg/sq.cm – 2200 (1930/2161).
• The same, after 25 cycles of “thermal swing” from –50 to +50 Celsius – 2082 (1912/2082).

Note: Rapakivi granite or ocular granite is a particularly high-quality variety from deposits in Fennoscandia. Rapakivi lined some metro stations in St. Petersburg.

Equipment and materials

To produce cast artificial stone, in addition to free-form stones (liquid and monumental), specific materials and equipment are required:

1. Vibration stand.
2. Models for making casting molds (if ready-made molds are not used).
3. Release compound – it is used to cover both the model during the production of the mold and the mold before casting the product so that it does not stick to each other.
4. Foundry molds.
5. Foundry mixtures - compounds.
6. Pigments.
7. Sand tray-cushion for homemade silicone molds.
8. Thermal gun – for final molding and welding of parts made of acrylic stone.

Note: Products made from liquid stone cannot be subjected to vibration treatment during curing, even if they are placed on a vibration stand - they will creep apart.

Vibration stand

The vibration stand is the heart of the entire decorative stone manufacturing process and the key to the quality of the final product. Its design, which ensures hardening with proper homogeneity (uniformity) of the mixture, is shown in the figure. It’s easy to make such a stand yourself. The main principle is that vibrations of the stand platform should occur predominantly in the horizontal plane. Subject to vibration processing, it is possible to independently produce artificial stone comparable in quality to industrial stone.

Note: advice to carry out vibration curing by shaking, moving or twitching the mold manually comes from people who have no idea about the physico-chemistry of hardening compounds for artificial stone.

Any low-power electric motors are used as vibrators; their total power is 30-50 W per 1 sq. m of stand platform area. It is advisable to place at least two motors in the corners of the platform, and preferably 4. If one is used, then it is better to place it in the center of the platform, and place pallets with forms on the sides. The motors are powered through a rheostat or thyristor regulator; this is necessary to adjust the vibration strength, see below.

Eccentrics are mounted on the motor shafts. It is not necessary to make turned ones; U-shaped bent pieces of rod or strips fastened with screws are quite suitable. Motor rotation speed is 600-3000 rpm. A lower speed will cause the mixture to stratify, and a higher speed will not provide the required vibration force. The vibrators are tightly, without any gaskets, attracted to the platform with steel bands and screws or self-tapping screws.

The platform is made of dense layered material 8-20 mm thick: good plywood, fiberglass, getinax. Its layering is important: mechanical vibrations in the platform should propagate more or less freely in the horizontal direction and quickly decay vertically. The tray with forms is secured to the platform with brackets using screws or self-tapping screws.

The springs must be identical and sufficiently rigid: under the weight of the platform when fully loaded, they must be compressed by no more than 1/5 of their length. In addition, the springs must be wide so that they do not noticeably bend in the vertical plane under the weight of a fully loaded platform.

The mechanical characteristic of springs is linear, i.e. they must be cylindrical from wire of uniform cross-section. Any progressive springs, in particular furniture springs, are unsuitable. The spring installation step is 300-600 mm along the length and width of the platform, i.e. for a 1x1 m platform you will need 9 springs. In the platform and chassis (base) of the stand, holes or ring grooves must be selected for the ends of the springs, otherwise the platform will slip.

It is better to make the stand chassis wooden, in order to absorb the same overtones; metal can ring. It is installed on a support (table) using adjusting screws - the horizontal position of the platform must be maintained accurately.

Stand adjustment

To adjust, the stand with the vibrators turned off is fully loaded: a pallet with filled forms is placed on it and secured. In order not to waste the working mixture, the models according to which they were made are placed in weight molds.

Then use a bubble level to check and use the chassis adjusting screws to set the level of the platform. After this, place an ordinary earthenware saucer with a bearing ball with a diameter of 5-6 mm directly on the molds, turn the vibrator regulator to minimum and turn them on.

Smoothly adding power, make sure that the ball begins to bounce on the saucer, and then carefully reduce it until it again begins to simply run around the saucer and occasionally tinkle. This completes the stand adjustment.

Notes:

1. When switching to another type of product, the stand must be adjusted again, both horizontally and in terms of vibration strength.
2. Orientation of eccentrics on motor shafts of great importance does not have; vibrators only introduce the platform-springs-damper system into resonance. To make adjustments easier, you can turn on the vibrators at full power with an empty platform, turn them off, notice in what position the eccentrics have stopped, and rearrange them uniformly, but this is for those who like to tinker with little things.

Video: making decorative stone from cement using a vibration stand

Models

Ready-made industrially produced decorative stones or suitable natural stones are usually used as models for casting molds. In both cases, the range of sizes, shapes and reliefs of the final product is limited. Meanwhile, almost everywhere, literally under your feet, there is an excellent material for making your own unique models: simple gully clay. No permission is required for its use in moderation; gully clay is not considered a mineral because Not suitable for pottery or construction. But for models it is quite suitable.

Analyzes for fat content, adhesion, organic impurities, etc. It’s also not necessary, just kneaded and molded. For three-dimensional models, the clay is mixed thickly until it has the consistency of plasticine. To prevent the model from cracking during drying, it is sculpted on a block from waste wood, polystyrene foam, packaging cardboard, pieces of plastic bottles, etc. The blockhead is filled with plasticine to such an extent that the clay layer is no thicker than 6-12 mm.

To make models of facing tiles of a certain size, a grid is made from strips of thin, smooth plastic. It is undesirable to use metal: it can rust or get caught by a burr. What height should the grille be? There are two possible cases:

• 6-12 mm for gypsum and concrete stone and from 3 mm for acrylic - for liquid clay without modeling.
• 20-40 mm for thick clay with stucco.

In both cases, a flat shield is covered with plastic film, a grate is placed on it and its cells are filled with clay. The shield must be placed in advance in a place protected from direct sunlight, otherwise the models will crack when drying. A lump of clay mortar is “slapped” next to the grate to control drying.

Clay is poured into a low grate to the top and left to dry as is. Once dry, each tile itself will acquire a natural, unique relief. Thick clay is placed in a high lattice in a layer of thickness under the final material (see above) and the desired relief is formed manually. You can make inscriptions, bas-reliefs, hieroglyphs, magic signs, etc.

Dry the models under a canopy in the shade in a light draft. Drying takes 2-5 days depending on the weather. It can be accelerated by hanging a 100-200 W infrared lamp or an electric fireplace (not an oil convection one!) at least 2 m above the models, connected through a powerful diode so that it works at half power. The drying is monitored by a control lump: if its underside is dry and does not wrinkle under your fingers, you can make molds.

Forms

Forms for artificial stone are mainly used in the following types:

1. Disposable clay models on a lost wax model - for sculpting and artistic casting.
2. Industrially produced polyurethane (in the figure on the left) - for small-scale production; cost money, but are durable.
3. Homemade silicone (on the right in the figure) - for home crafts or piece production. Resource – up to several dozen castings.

To make a silicone mold, a model, or a set of models for tiles, is laid out on a flat, stable surface covered with polyethylene and surrounded by a side 10-20 mm above the tops of the models. The models and the inside of the side are lubricated with grease: grease, tsiatim, shahtol. The shield with the molds is set horizontally so that the upper surface of the silicone (which will then be the bottom of the mold) is also horizontal.

You need acidic silicone, the cheap kind that smells like vinegar. Silicone is squeezed out of the tube onto the model in a spiral from the center to the edges and to the side until the cell is filled. To avoid bubbles, the silicone is dispersed with a flute brush, each time dipping it into a foamy solution of any liquid dishwashing detergent. Soap solution is not suitable, it has an alkaline reaction, which can ruin the acidic silicone. After filling the cell with the model, smooth the silicone surface with a spatula, also wetting it in detergent.

Dry the form in the same way as clay, but without infrared illumination, otherwise bubbles will form. But ventilation significantly speeds up drying. The drying rate of silicone is about 2 mm/day. To control drying, you can place a ring (a piece of pipe) next to the molds and fill it with silicone. It needs to be dried until completely dry.

Video: homemade molds for artificial stone

Foundry mixtures

Gypsum stone

The mixture for gypsum stone is prepared in small portions for one or several products; its survivability is up to 10 minutes. It is advisable to pour the mixture into the mold within 3-4 minutes from the start of kneading. Compound:

• Gypsum;
• Citric acid – 0.3% by weight of gypsum, to slow down hardening;
• Water – 0.8-0.9 by volume of gypsum for the starting layer and 0.6 by volume of gypsum for the main mass;
• Pigment – ​​2-6% by weight of gypsum, depending on the color, selected on test samples.

concrete stone

The base is a cement-sand mortar, but the ratio of the components is the opposite of the construction one: 3 parts cement to 1 part sand. The proportion of pigment is the same as for gypsum. Polymer additives are acceptable. Read more about making your own concrete.

Cast acrylic stone

Acrylic stone is made on the basis of acrylic resin with a hardener. The permissible proportion of mineral filler, including pigment, is 3:1 based on the finished mixture; the share of pigment (the same 2-6%) is calculated by weight of the filler.

For example, according to the instructions, the resin and hardener should be mixed 5:1; this will give 25% of the compound's weight. 75% remains for the pigment filler. Let’s say that according to the test results, 4% of pigment is required. Then the final composition will be as follows: resin – 20%; hardener – 5%; filler – 71% and pigment – ​​4%.

That is, we calculate the composition of the compound from the binder - resin with a hardener. Reducing the filler proportion improves the thermoplasticity of the product and its elasticity, but reduces the mechanical strength. Stone chips, gravel, screenings are used as filler. The filler should be washed with dishwashing detergent, calcined and rinsed again with clean water.

First, the pigment is introduced into the filler, then the resin is mixed with the hardener, the filler with the pigment is added and mixed. The viability of the mixture from the introduction of the hardener into the resin is 15-20 minutes; setting time – 30-40 minutes; Ready to use time: 24 hours.

Liquid stone

Materials for liquid stone are quite expensive, so two compositions are used: front and primer. They differ in composition and percentage of filler. Primer composition, in order of component introduction:

• Gelcoat – 20%.
• Microcalcite – 73%.
• Hardener – 1%.
• Accelerator – 6%.

The front composition uses 40% gelcoat, a hardener with an accelerator as for primer; the rest is filler with pigment. The pot life, setting and readiness times are the same as for acrylic stone.

Pigments

Pigments for artificial stone are used in dry powder, paste and liquid, mineral and synthetic. Pigment powder is introduced into dry filler or plaster; liquid pigment is added to the mix. Using pigment paste, you can achieve a spotted or striped color of the stone. To do this, it is injected into the knead with a syringe just before the end of kneading.

Separators

Different release agents are used for different types of artificial stone:

• For gypsum - a solution of wax in turpentine 1:7. Wax shavings are added in small portions while stirring to turpentine, heated in a water bath to 50-60 degrees.
• For concrete - grease, as for clay molds.
• For cast acrylic – a solution of stearin in styrene 1:10; as a last resort - high-quality grease (cyatim, fiol).
• For liquid stone - stearin in styrene in the specified proportion.

sand cushion

The volumetric silicone mold can burst due to vibration and heating of the hardening gypsum or acrylic compound, so before casting it is deepened into clean, dry fine sand, poured onto a pallet, 2/3 or 3/4 full. The horizontalness of the mold's mouth is checked with a level.

Thermal gun

A heat gun is something like a miniature hair dryer that produces a thin, strong stream of hot air. In addition to welding finished parts from acrylic stone, it is convenient to assemble plastic frames when making silicone molds.

Casting

The complete technology of casting liquid stone involves the starting and basic stages. Accordingly, for the sake of economy and quality, a starting (face) and base mixture is prepared. If small flat forms without relief on the surface are filled, then facial mixtures are used immediately.

The starting mixture is liquid, well-fitting to the surface of the mold, with decorative filler and pigment. It is applied to the mold with a brush. Gypsum and cement with sand to start are diluted liquidly; in the acrylic mixture, reduce the proportion of filler with pigment to 60-50%, correspondingly increasing the proportion of resin with hardener.

The base composition is added to the mold after the starter has set. The filler for acrylic is microcalcite without pigment; it will provide a good background against which the decorative advantages of the facial filler will appear. The base gypsum is mixed until it becomes thick and creamy.

When pouring concrete, the basic pouring is done in two steps: after filling the mold halfway, apply a plastic reinforcing mesh that does not reach the edge of the mold, then top it up to the edge. The base fill is smoothed flush with the edge of the mold with a spatula. When pouring acrylic, the spatula must be clean, grease-free, and made of polished metal.

At the beginning of setting, grooves are drawn along the surface of the casting (which will be the underside of the product) for better adhesion to the binder at . During all casting operations, the vibration stand is turned off. To increase durability, cast gypsum stone after removal from the mold is treated with vegetable oil heated in a water bath.

Video: simple production of artificial stone - from mixture to finished material

Part 1

Part 2

Molding of liquid stone

Products made from liquid stone are made by spraying or enveloping, direct or reverse. When applying directly, a base made of wood, fiberboard, chipboard, MDF is first covered with primer with a layer of 3-4 mm, and then a decorative layer is applied. This is simple, but the surface of the product is rough due to protruding filler granules, which requires labor-intensive grinding and polishing.

The reverse method is more technologically advanced: with a bowl for washing, it can be made independently in 2-4 hours, and if ready-made matrices are available, mass production is possible. In the reverse method, the matrix opposite to the product is covered with a separator, a compound is applied, a wood base board is applied and pressed down with weights. If the inner surface of the matrix is ​​mirror-smooth, then the tabletop will be the same without additional processing.

Monumental molding

Boulders, blocks, and flagstone are formed from a concrete composition on a block covered with pieces of thin flexible reinforcing mesh with wire clips. First, prepare a very dry solution without pigment, with a minimum amount of water. They cover the blockhead with cakes of it so that their edges touch. After the base has set, but while it is still wet, prepare a working solution of normal consistency with pigment, and use it to bring the product into shape. Cover from rain with a film canopy for the period of complete hardening (40 days).

Stonehenge in the garden

Landscape artificial stone must have ancient look, for this purpose it is aged a day or two after setting:

• Rub the entire, sunnier side with ocher mixed with gas soot; Carbon black as a pigment is commercially available. This will create the appearance of weathering crust.