What’s the Difference Between Natural Stone and Cultured Stone?
Natural stone is the real thing: carved from the Earth, beautiful, heavy, and difficult to work with. However, natural stone can be workable when cut into a thin veneer. This makes the stone lighter and easier to handle.
Made from Portland cement, aggregates and iron oxide pigments, cultured stone (Cultured stone also called artificial cultured stone, Man-made Cultural Stone, Ledge Stone, Cast Stone etc.), are names given to an artificial stone veneer that looks much like real stone.
Artificial stone is heavier and more substantial than the polymer faux panels, but not as heavy as real stone. It comes in individual “stones” that you fit together piece by piece and mortar into the wall, just like real stone. According to Cultured Stone, diameters range from 2″ – 30″ and have an average wall thickness of 1 3/4″.
