Sandstone is one of the most widely used stones, common in many geological sequences and easily used for architectural purposes. In construction, the main advantage of sandstone over most other stones is that it can be easily split along its deposition plane using basic hand tools - and natural split faces are very much needed.
Sandstones vary in the nature of their constituent grains and may vary in size, composition, shape, roughness, and degree of dissolution.
The particles may be arranged in different bands, and the quality and type of natural cement is variable. All of these affect how any given sandstone will behave as a dimensional stone.
Sandstone is not always the most versatile natural stone, mainly due to limitations imposed by the original underlayment process. Where the sandstone comes from marine deposits, the beds tend to be relatively thin, and these stacks can create weaknesses, although these can be exploited when dividing the stone into paving and flooring, and sometimes for roofing.
Sandstone may have an advantage over limestone in traditional block stone masonry use because even lower quality sandstone is not in use to the extent of damage that limestone can (although much of the damage to limestone in the past may be related to acid rain, not so common anymore).
Probably the main difference between limestone and sandstone is the lack of a network of micropores in sandstone, which means that they tend not to hold water for as long as limestone and are therefore less affected by the effects of frost.
In addition, sandstones tend to have lower total porosity. This means the stone can hold less water and is less likely to have an increase in internal pressure due to water freezing or salt crystallizing and causing cracking or other damage.
The main disadvantage that sandstone exhibits compared to most other stones is the presence of different types of substrates that can affect various properties. For example, small amounts of carbonate in the matrix can significantly reduce resistance to acidic influences. Many sandstones contain small amounts of clay minerals, which are generally inert but sometimes swell, causing damage under constant cycles of wetting and drying. In some cases, clay-rich inclusions or regions will weather rapidly.
Unlike many building stones available, it's hard to imagine an environment where sandstone would appear out of place. This may be because sandstone makes up most of our own landscape.
Through a brief exploration of new developments in sandstone design and preparation, as well as the material's inherent environmentally friendly properties, it is clear that sandstone is rapidly becoming the building material of the future. Combined with the timeless advantages of sandstone, including its durability, strength and slip resistance, as well as increasing value over time, sandstone has proven itself to be a versatile and useful stone.
