There are some lovely stone buildings in this county and an adjoining one. They're very charming, and vary in style from ranch to craftsman to Mediterranean castle. :) The one problem I have heard about older stone buildings is that snakes like them a lot, but I'm sure that's something one could overcome with good maintenance and good construction.

Just curious, though... does the book address structural strength issues like earthquake reinforcements, etc?

Sara :D

I wonder if that would preclude new (permitted) construction of stone buildings in an increasing number of areas? Seems like earthquake requirements are getting more stringent in areas where they are a consideration. Perhaps local regs are another reason for the increasing use of the manufactured stone-like facing products?

We live in the highest earthquake zone, so we'll probably never do more than a short dry-stack wall or something like that. Though we did talk at one point about building a smoke house, and I think stone might work well for that. :wink:

Sara

Have you thought about getting a Liger?

The average male Liger stands over 12 feet tall and weighs over 900 pounds. I think one of these would chase those scary old snakes away.

I would really recommend "Building with Stone" by Charles Long. The old method of building a stone wall by laying courses of stone and not using a veneer or slip forms definitly looks the best and it doesn't take a pro to do it. It all depends on your proximity to the material...unless your really determined. But if you've got the stone nearby then look at this building technique.

Will

Some of the veneer products look great, Blayne, but that does add another cost element. I think that for a lot of people who use stone it's a combination of the cost factor (or lack thereof) and the charm of using indigenous materials. I think you're right that earthquake can be accounted for with steel within, with natural or with veneer. I remember seeing a natural stone addition (a craftsman-style turret entryway) being built in a nearby tourist town, and they were using steel someway or another (would HAVE to around here to pass code in the middle of town), but can't remember just how they did it.

Sara :D

Right. I saw that book and thought it was geared more for those building retaining walls and landscaping stonework. I was more interested in building solid stone walls. I love the permenance of it and the fact that its made with a local natural material. It is also easy to maintain. It won't rot, rust, and the older it looks the better.

Will

I really enjoyed the homes on this site with the smooth stone work.

That stuff is just incredible looking.

Ya know what else is incredible? I dunno if I mentioned it yet or not........

.........but ligers, man, are they cool or what?

Is it me or are all the people who have ligers totally dweebs? Not to mention that the castle in that picture, though made of wood, is totally not Skip built and could totally use Ric Carlson to do some stone work on it.

For any substantial sized home, you would probably do better with re-enforced concrete and a stone veneer. The problem with traditional masonry walls is that to allow for the weight above from any structure and the actual wall height the walls must be made correspondingly thicker and thicker as the height and weight goes up. This also means that footings must grow proportionately. At some point, it becomes too costly and too tricky to make the walls safely (for an amateur mason). You might take note that most rock-masonry homes are limited by wall height and length and usually do not include rock walls for a second story, if there is one at all. In Europe, most of the "amateur stone houses" are small hovels. But, if that is what one wants, it is a very quaint style, and has it's own attraction.

For a very rustic example of re-enforced concrete with rock veneer, take a look at Timberline Lodge on Mount Hood in Oregon. You would never guess that it is simply a rock veneer on that massive foundation of steel re-enforced concrete. ---hand fitted, of course.

Slip form is great for a bang-up job, and is very easy for the novice to build, but it never quite looks right.

Regards,
-A

I have a Slipform stone building DVD. I think it is about
1 1/2 hours long. Very instructive and entertaining. $20.

-Rick

so what about a stone foundation? ...could you get a full basement out of stone/mortar?
J

Is that fieldstone in that fireplace?

:D Now if you would have made two arches and painted them gold... 8)

Please post some pics of your project. tks Phil