Stone Installation on a Fireplace

Installation Surface

• The first step of any stone fireplace surround is to ensure that you have a solid installation surface for the wire mesh to adhere to. This can be a fire-resistant drywall or a concrete board. It is nailed or screwed in place on top of the wall studs and provides the base for the overall stone installation as it wraps up around the fireplace.

Moisture Barrier

• Before you can begin the installation, you need a moisture barrier behind the wire mesh and the stone itself. When concrete breathes, it takes in moisture and then expels it. This condensation can build up behind the installation and rot the walls unless you have some form of protection in place. A sheet of plastic is the preferred method for moisture barriers, although felt paper will do the trick equally well.

Wire Mesh

• After the moisture barrier is in place you need to cover the surface with wire mesh. While it is simple enough to cut down to size with a pair of tin snips or metal shears, and you can tack it into place with a staple gun or hammer tacker, you need to remember a critical step. Wire mesh has small cups on the mesh itself, which are meant to cup upwards so the mesh holds the mortar in place. Check your mesh when installing to ensure the angle of the mesh cups is upward.

Large Stones

• Natural stone veneers and smaller stones can be installed with mortar that has been pressed into the wire mesh to bond with the stone as well as grip the mesh. However, with larger stones whose weight is sufficient for the pieces to fall off the wall before the concrete cures, you need to tie them off while the mortar dries. Nails are placed above such stones and you tie them off with wire, which is cut off later when the concrete has dried and you are grouting the installation.