Can You Cover a Concrete Porch to Look Like Stone?

Natural Stone Materials

• Concrete is a suitable installation surface for many types of natural stone, including randomly shaped flagstone pieces and uniform tiles. Stone masons generally install natural stone over concrete by setting the stone materials in a bed of mortar and filling the joints with grout. With adequate waterproofing, most varieties of stone remain attractive and easy to clean. Common natural stone varieties for outdoor projects include slate, travertine, limestone and slate.

Precast Concrete Pavers

• Although popular in brick and block-shaped form, precast concrete pavers are also available in irregular, faux-stone shapes and with surface textures that resemble common outdoor stone pavers, such as sandstone. Builders install pavers over slabs either dry, usually on a bed of leveling sand, or in a bed of mortar. Paver joints accept either sand or grout. Faux-stone pavers provide the appearance of natural stone at a relatively inexpensive price. However, concrete pavers are usually several inches thick. Therefore, applying pavers over a concrete porch significantly raises the overall floor height.

Stamped Concrete

• To stamp concrete, masons lay rubber or plastic pads across wet concrete. Patterns cut into the undersides of the pads, called "stamps," imprint the concrete with a variety of shapes, including natural stone patterns and textures. To apply stamps to an existing concrete porch, masons lay a fresh bed of cement over the slab, a process called resurfacing, and apply stamps to the thin, fresh covering of cement. Concrete stamp patterns include random, faux-stone patterns and uniform impressions that resemble tile.

Engraving and Surface Coatings

• Applied to concrete, the term "engraving" refers to a wide range of decorative cuts. Concrete finishing professionals use saws, routing tools and grinding tools to create patterns and textures across an existing slab's surface, including faux-stone patterns and textures. Used along with engraving, concrete stain adds color or combinations of colors that resemble natural stone.