Tips For Installing AirStone On An Exterior Foundation Wall

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of AirStone for IZEA. All opinions are 100% mine.

We got the foundation wall makeover finished, and I love how it turned out! We covered the plain foundation wall with AirStone in the Spring Creek color (a mix of grays, shale, and charcoal). It was such a simple project, so today I’m sharing tips for installing AirStone on an exterior foundation wall.

Tips for installing AirStone on an exterior foundation wall

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Tips For Installing AirStone On An Exterior Foundation Wall

We used AirStone, a gorgeous, ultra-light stone wall covering product that looks and feels just like real stone, but weighs 75% less! Our foundation wall makeover was obviously an exterior project, but you can use AirStone indoors as well. For outdoor projects all you need is construction adhesive, and indoors you just need a pre-mixed adhesive and a putty knife. If you need to cut any pieces to size or shape, AirStone cuts really easily with a hacksaw, so getting a gorgeous stone look is actually a pretty simple DIY project!

Sort Out The Stone

The first thing we did is unpack a few boxes of stone. The stones come in multiple colors and lots of different shapes and sizes, so we sorted out the stones into piles so we could easily “randomize” as we put them on the wall.

Tips for installing AirStone on an exterior foundation wall

Prep The Surface

Make sure your surface is clean, dry, and free of dust and dirt. Our foundation wall was covered in dirt and dust, especially down near the bottom of the wall, so I took a rag and wiped it clean.

2-Step Installation

In terms of actually installing the stone, it’s super easy! Apply a line of construction adhesive to the back of the stone, then stick it on the wall!

Tips for installing AirStone on an exterior foundation wall

Tips for installing AirStone on an exterior foundation wall

That’s it; super easy! (If you’re doing an indoor project, apply pre-mixed adhesive to the back of the stone using a putty knife, then stick the stone on the wall.)

Once we placed the stones on the wall, we shifted them around a bit to help spread the adhesive out over the back of the stone, then shifted them into their final position. Because they’re so lightweight, they stuck to the wall immediately without sliding down or anything.

Have 2 People Help

If you have a second person to help you, the project goes way faster! My husband helped me install the AirStone, and it was definitely the easiest project the two of us have ever done together! My husband is not really a “project” kind of guy, but he is always willing to help me out when I need it, cuz he’s a sweetie.

I was in charge of figuring out the “random” pattern and what size and shape stone would fit on the wall next, and he grabbed it, glued it up, and handed it to me. It was a really easy 2 person project.

But if you are doing it by yourself, don’t worry! I finished up a few sections of wall on my own while JM was at work, and it is totally doable by yourself!

Start At The Bottom And At Corners

The best way to start the whole project is to start at the bottom. You want to leave about half an inch of space at the bottom of the wall in order to leave room for the wall to expand and contract as the weather changes. You can always cover up the gap with mulch or dirt once the stone is installed.

Tips for installing AirStone on an exterior foundation wall

If your wall has corners, don’t worry! AirStone has corner pieces that make corners and finished edges super easy! If you want the stone to go around corners, start applying the stone at the corner. That way you can make sure that the corner pieces line up perfectly. If you get to the other end of the wall and need to cut a few pieces down to size to make it all fit, no problem.

Use A Hacksaw To Cut Pieces To Fit

The foundation wall goes all the way along behind the DIY rain barrel stand my dad and I built earlier this year, but we had no problem installing AirStone behind the stand. It comes in individual, pre-cut pieces that fit together perfectly and can easily slip in behind the posts.

But the other thing we had to contend with behind the rain barrel stand was the gas meter. Luckily it is extremely easy to cut AirStone using a hacksaw. Just measure and mark the stone, and start cutting from the front/textured side of the stone. We had no trouble cutting a few stones to fit in tight spaces.

Tips for installing AirStone on an exterior foundation wall

We also cut a few pieces to fit around the areas where the electrical wires come into the house.

Tips for installing AirStone on an exterior foundation wall

Add Finishing Touches On Top Of The Stone

While we cut a few pieces of stone to fit around larger fixtures in the wall like the gas and electrical inlets, you can always install fixtures on top of the stone if you wish.

There’s a dryer vent on the foundation wall, so we installed stone up to and around the vent opening, then installed the dryer vent cover over top of it once the stone was fully cured. It’s easy to drill through AirStone, so I just drilled a few pilot holes and then attached the dryer vent cover using a few screws.

Tips for installing AirStone on an exterior foundation wall

For indoor projects, this means you can easily hang artwork etc. on top of the stone after it has fully cured.

I’m so thrilled with how the foundation wall makeover turned out!

Tips for installing AirStone on an exterior foundation wall

Tips for installing AirStone on an exterior foundation wall

Tips for installing AirStone on an exterior foundation wall

You can find AirStone at Lowes, and if you’re looking for some inspiration, or how-to videos using AirStone, you can check out the AirStone Inspiration website here.

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Disclosure: I received compensation from IZEA and AirStone in exchange for my participation in this campaign, and my honest discussion of their products. But the AirStone product is seriously amazing and all opinions in this post are 100% my own. I would never write a post about something I didn’t think was useful or interesting for you guys, and Practically Functional will only publish sponsored posts for companies or products I love and believe in! 🙂

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Jessi Wohlwend

I believe that anyone can do crafts and DIY projects, regardless of skill or experience. I love sharing simple craft ideas, step by step DIY project tutorials, cleaning hacks, and other tips and tricks all with one goal in mind: giving you the tools you need to “do it yourself”, complete fun projects, and make awesome things!

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Reader Interactions

  1. Carole says

    3 years ago

    I am thinking of using this product on top of wood siding. I live in San Diego so weather is not normally an issue…no freezing and not much rain. Has anyone had experience using this as the sub surface?

  2. norman c kopke says

    4 years ago

    i used loctite (3x) on about 140-170 sq. ft. of airstone. Probably 15 or so tubes. Great for 2 yrs., falling off since. Got in contact with loctite and they do not recommend their adhesive because if moisture gets in between the stone and cinder blocks which i have, and freezes, they could fall off. they recommend thibset concrete

    • Jessi Wohlwend says

      4 years ago

      Ah good to know, thanks! I haven’t had any issues with the Loctite I used on my foundation wall (and we’re in Chicago so we do get moisture), but this is a great tip in case anyone is worried about it.

  3. Susan Martz says

    4 years ago

    Hello,
    Thanks for the DIY on the Airstone.
    I have a question on that – I have poured concrete walls for my foundation. So it is not a flat surface, like block. I am really want to cover my foundation. What would you suggest? Putting in a flat surface (like plywood) first and attaching the Airstone to it?

    Let me know what you think – thanks much!
    Susan

    • Jessi Wohlwend says

      4 years ago

      The surface doesn’t need to be perfectly flat or smooth to put Airstone over it. A concrete foundation wall should be just fine; the adhesive you use to attach the Airstone should fill in any uneven spots on the surface of the concrete.

  4. James Guilfoyle says

    4 years ago

    Can I use mortar on the airstone to install on block steps outside

    • Jessi Wohlwend says

      4 years ago

      For outdoor applications, Airstone recommends the Loctite Premium Construction Adhesive that I used for this project. I haven’t tried it with any other adhesive so I don’t know how it will work.

  5. Laura says

    4 years ago

    How has the stone held up? I have seen reviews where the stone started to crack after being up for a short amount of time. I’d be curious to see how it’s doing on the outside of the house!

  6. Jo-el Horn says

    5 years ago

    We have installed this product on a exterior porch, the adhesive Lowe’s sold us did not hold up at all in the spring a bunch of stone came off and broke, we then installed with locktite adhesive again they fell off, we used cement this spring and are hoping this will work. Very frustrating.

    • Jessi Wohlwend says

      4 years ago

      Ugh, that’s totally frustrating! I used the Loctite that AirStone recommended on our exterior foundation wall and it’s still holding up five years later (through Chicago winters and summers) so I wonder why it didn’t work for you? I hope the cement works!

  7. Aliya says

    5 years ago

    This is gorgeous! I love projects that I can do myself. Thanks for the inspiration!

  8. Dave says

    5 years ago

    Should I coat with a clear product after project is complete? I am using on outside porch, project looks great don’t know if I need to seal it?

    • Jessi Wohlwend says

      5 years ago

      Nope you don’t need to! The stone by itself is fine to be indoors or outdoors, so as long as you used an outdoor adhesive to apply the stone, it is fine just as it is.

  9. gerald shane says

    5 years ago

    When I first installed Air Stone, used air stone adhesive but its no longer being made as I was told what is in outer adhesive, will melt the sire stone used out side of the house, now I am told that construction adhesive will work .

    • Jessi Wohlwend says

      5 years ago

      AirStone makes an indoor adhesive you can use for indoor projects, or they recommend using Loctite Construction Adhesive for outdoor products that need a bit more water and weather-proofing. https://www.airstone.com/faqs

      • kaitlin says

        5 years ago

        How many tubes of Adhesive did you go through ?

        • Jessi Wohlwend says

          5 years ago

          I think we went through about 6 tubes to get the entire thing done.

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