Facing stone from gypsum: a few words about its properties
Even in Ancient Babylon and Greece, plaster was used as a finishing material. It was used for cladding floors, ceilings, walls in completely different rooms. Such a wide range of applications was justified by its unrivaled performance properties. These include, first of all, the environmental friendliness of the material. And also ability to regulate the microclimate in the room ( thanks to the ability to breathe).
In addition, it is enough hygienic material and pleasant to the touch .That is, you can really use it in absolutely any rooms( including children's rooms).Also unsurpassed quality of gypsum is its ease and ease of processing. You are able to make it yourself, and slightly change the purchased one. At the same the strength of the stone will remain unchanged .Plus, it has the excellent thermal and sound insulation characteristics of the .
Manufacture of artificial gypsum stone by our own hands
In this part we will not talk about how this stone is made in factories. We will describe the self-manufacturing process .But for this you will need special matrices. They can be silicone or polyurethane. Depending on the shape of each of them, this will be the finishing material from the outside. Thus, it is possible to imitate absolutely any surfaces, including artificial marble from gypsum. By the way, you can buy matrix data in a typical building store.
We proceed to the direct production of stone. For this, the matrices are laid on a table and their inner surface is treated with an active substance to improve performance. Then, paint the color of the color you want to have a gypsum facing stone. For example, it can be a brown tint or blue. If two colors are assumed, then apply them with light strokes using a brush. The next step is to prepare the working solution. It consists of a liquid and a dry mixture. The first includes: retarder, water, dye. All these ingredients should be carefully mixed.
Dry composition includes: filler and gypsum. In some cases only gypsum is used. Then all the mixtures( liquid and dry) are mixed and poured into the matrix. Give some time to allow the solution to catch a little. And then at an angle of 20 degrees remove the excess solution, using a notched trowel. That is, on the reverse side, small incisions( zigzag shape) are formed. This is necessary for better adhesion( adhesion of the material to the wall).The finished stone is removed from the matrix after 30-40 minutes. After that, it should lie slightly at room temperature and gain some strength.
Finishing gypsum stone: learn the method of laying
Attach this finishing material with virtually any composition: PVA glue, mounting, water-acrylic compounds, mastics. However, before this it is important how to properly treat the base with a special primer mix( or gypsum plaster, but not always!).And only then apply a cement-adhesive solution with a notched trowel. The facing stone is applied in such a way that excess glue is squeezed out from under it( that is very firmly).
First you need to cover an area of not more than 1 m2.As the adhesive solution dries quickly.
But at the same time, you need to make sure that the adhesive does not fall on the front side in any way. When laying, try to withstand the evenness of the rows. It is clear that this is a decorative finish and you can allow some curvature, imitating those or other surfaces. But, if the image of a brick is supposed, then watch for the horizontal and vertical joints. At the last stage, to improve the durability of the entire coating, it is possible to apply protective compounds( for example, in rooms with high humidity).