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Welcome to Custom Cast Stone Residential Services
At Custom Cast Stone, we will work closely with
your builder, architect, designer or contractor to make sure
your project meets your expectations and deadlines. Our products
run the gamut from architectural cast stone products to engraved products
(bricks, memorials and address stones).
We invite you to explore our products, gallery and
other resources. Feel free to contact
us with
any specific questions about customization of your next
project.
About Cast Stone
Cast Stone is a highly refined architectural precast building
stone manufactured to simulate natural cut stone. One of the oldest
known types of concrete, it is the most aesthetically refined
form of concrete known today. Cast Stone is a masonry product
which provides architectural trim, ornamentation or functional
features to buildings or other structures.
The earliest known
use of Cast Stone was in the year 1138. The product was first
used extensively in London in the year 1900 and in America around
1920.
The Cast Stone Institute was incorporated in 1927. Since the early
1920's, Cast Stone has earned widespread acceptance in the architectural
community as a superior replacement for many masonry materials
and for all types of natural cut building stone.
Cast Stone is made from fine and coarse aggregates
such as limestone, marble, calcite, granite, quartz, natural
sands, Portland cement, mineral oxide coloring pigments, chemical
admixtures and water. Not surprisingly, Cast Stone is available
in any color and can look like limestone, brownstone, blue
stone, granite, slate, travertine or marble. It can match
terra-cotta or brick and makes a perfect substitute for brick
shapes.
The raw material mixtures are proportioned for maximum density
and to produce the required "fine grained" texture similar
to natural stone with no bug-holes permitted as dictated by
industry
standards. White Portland cement (ASTM C 150) is usually used
to achieve lighter colors and color consistency. Blending
of grey Portland cement and coloring pigments (ASTM C 979)
is
a fairly common practice. Sands are naturally available in
a wide variety of colors, and they can be crushed from quarried
stones as well. Reinforcement can be added to provide the structural
advantages of precast concrete with the beauty of natural
stone.
Since Cast Stone is a type of architectural precast concrete,
the question is often asked: "What is the difference
between Cast Stone and architectural precast concrete?"
The short answer
is that Cast Stone is used in place of natural stone.
As a type of building stone, Cast Stone is specified under
the masonry
division 04720. It is usually set by a masonry contractor using
standard building stone anchors. Perhaps most importantly,
unless otherwise specified, Cast Stone looks like natural,
dimensional, cut building stone. Upon close examination, the
finish of Cast Stone looks like limestone; some call it a "sugar
cube finish" to distinguish its appearance which is normally
associated with concrete. This dense finish is more resistant
to weather and dirt, and the fine aggregates retain the granular
texture through decades of exposure to the elements. Sandblast
or chemical retardation finishing normally used in finishing
of architectural precast concrete panels) are seldom used with
Cast Stone because of the dulling of aggregates and the loss
of fine detail, which are not acceptable in quality Cast Stone
work.
Custom Cast Stone
734 East 169th Street • Westfield, Indiana 46074
Toll Free 888.776.9960 © Custom Cast
Stone
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