The Cast Stone Co Ltd art stone products are manufactured from high grade raw materials that have been chosen for their performance and suitability. The cement, pigments and waterproofing ingredients all conform to their relevant British or European standard.
All The Cast Stone Company products are manufactured to BS1217:2008with compressive strength in excess of 25N/mm @ 28 day period.
Capillary Absorption Test /CAT to BS1217@2008. – Typical absorption 3.5%
Dimensional Tolerance
0 – 600mm +/- 2mm
601 – 1000mm +/- 3mm
1001 – 2500mm +/- 4mm
2501 – 4000mm +/- 5mm
4000mm – plus +/- 6mm
Fixings
Some products will incorporate abbey slots to tie back to masonry, ie jambs. M12 lifting sockets can also be cast into large weight loads for handling/lifting purposes.
Efflorescence
A common problem with all cementitious based products. This is a temporary problem which can show itself in a whitening of the surface of the stone but does not constitute a performance issue with the stone in terms of strength or durability.
In line with normal weathering the efflorescence with disappear with time.
Structural Information
The Cast Stone Company products are decorative units only and are not designed to be load bearing or structural in any way. We always recommend that a structural engineer assess each project for design purposes. All fixings, supporting lintels and sections should be assessed in the original design stages.
Any units over 600mm in lengths contain one or more reinforcing bars. These are for handling purposes only and do not make the unit structural in any way.
Installation of cast stone units
Cills should ideally be built in at the time of construction. They should be bedded under the stooling only at the time of installation with an inset packer in the centre for support. The cill should then be pointed underside upon completion. Full bedding of cills must be avoided. In severe exposure conditions a sealant joint is recommended.
Heads should be supported by a steel lintel due to the non load bearing nature of the product.
Note Bedding mortar for all components should be no stronger that 1:1:6
Handling & Storage
All components should be handled with extreme care and stored on firm level ground.
Pallets must not be stacked on top of each other as this may result in damage to lower units.
When handling and re-palletising, components must be packed to ensure surfaces do not come into contact. Units must be supported by two bearers positioned approximately 25% in from each end.
All components must be handled in the appropriate way in which to minimise any damage, they must not be subjected to undue stresses and strains, this could lead to invisible hair line cracks.
Heads must always be stored in the vertical position, as laying them flat on the pallets will result in breaking their backs.