FAQ

• How do you sell your stone? By the ton or pound? Is there a price difference between the two?
  We sell our natural stone products by the pound, ton, cubic yard or square foot. We will sell ANY amount the customer needs - whether that's just a couple pounds of Rainbow Pebble for an aquarium or 10 semi-loads of building stone for a large custom home or commercial building.
  
  For instance, if you have a 200 sqft patio to build and you want to use a 1-2" Quartzite Stepstone material that covers 100 sqft/ton then you will need apprx 2 tons of material to do that project. You can come into any of our yards and purchase a few hundred pounds at a time and pay the pound price - which typically is .17 cents per pound OR you could buy the 2 tons at once at the ton rate which is typically $275/ton (13.75 cents/lb) and the difference will more than pay for local delivery!
• How do you deliver stone products? Do you do "placement" of large boulders or columns?
  That depends on what type of stone you are purchasing...
  Palletized stone products are delivered on a flatbed truck accompanied by a portable forklift for moving the stone once the truck is on-site. The total length of the truck & forklift combo is 40' so be sure access is adequate for this size conveyance to get in & out of your site.
  
  Delivery is typically to the curb or driveway but we can extend that to stable, gravel surfaces at the discretion of the delivery driver. Realize that our forklift is 8' wide and 8' tall so it cannot get through smaller gates or under garage doors.
  
  We have very limited "placement" capabilities which make it difficult if not impossible to place boulders on a site unless they are just off the paved surface or it is the middle of summer and the site is reasonably level, packed earth. In such cases, the final decision is solely up to our driver who will base this decision first on safety to persons and then on safety to property. We will NEVER place columns or any stone into a water feature BUT can arrange for advanced placement services by several local contractors either with a boom truck or other equipment brought to the site. Please contact us to discuss your particular needs in this regard.
• I am planning a large stone project in the future. What size of order is considered "large" and what kind of price breaks are available?
  Good question. What some people consider a "large" project, may be quite small or average to us. On truly large projects, the main way we can offer significant price breaks is if we can ship the material directly from the quarry to your jobsite.
  
  These deliveries would be truckload quantities ranging from 24 - 32 tons for palletized stone shipped on a flatbed and 12 - 24 ton for bulk stone delivered in a dump truck. On these direct deliveries, please consider ingress and egress for such large trucks, availability of equipment to unload two ton pallets from a flatbed truck, room to store multiple pallets of stone and the impact of dumping large quantities of bulk rock or boulders directly on the ground at the proposed site.
  
  If a direct ship delivery is feasible, the savings may be anywhere from 5 to 25% below the retail ton price in our yards depending on the type of stone and destination logistics. Please contact a manager at one of our locations or through our website to explore direct-ship stone options for your next project.
• I am confused by all the different terms used to describe flagstone. Can you help me out here?
  Since natural stone is not a "manufactured" material, it is sometimes difficult to get a handle on "standards" for the industry regarding classification and grading. Here is how we handle the basic differences at Pacific Stonescape.
  
  First of all, flagstone is a general term used to describe large, flat pieces of stone used most commonly for landscape walkways and patios and interior flooring. There are many grades of flagstone but two terms that we use at Pacific Stonescape refers to the size of the stone - Stepstone and Standup Flagstone.
  
  STEPSTONE refers to smaller size flat stone that can be easily handled by one person. Irregular sizes are typically 1' x 1' or less up to 18" x 18". Stepstone is typically packaged "laid-down" flat on a pallet.
  
  Standup FLAGSTONE refers to larger size flat stone that may take two or more people to handle. Irregular sizes will range from 18" x 18" up to 3' x 4' with some smaller and larger pieces almost always present in a pallet depending on stone type and quarry practices. Standup Flagstone is always palletized VERTICALLY - hence the descriptor "standup".
  
  Thicknesses of Stepstone or Flagstone will vary widely from:
  1" Minus (aka: thin set, mortar set, mason's grade) usually set in a mortar bed application
  1-2" suitable for mortar set or dryset applications
  2-3"+ usually used in dry set applications
  
  Different types of stone are available in Stepstone or Standup Flagstone (or both) at Pacific Stonescape and these types will range across a broad spectrum including: andesite, argulite, bluestone, limestone, quartzite, sandstone and slate.
  
• How much will it take to cover...? (and other misc. formulas)
  OK, here it goes...
  Coverage for bulk material (gravel, soil, etc.)...
  One cubic yard of material will cover...
  27 square feet - 12" deep
  54 square feet - 6" deep
  81 square feet - 4" deep
  108 square feet - 3" deep
  162 square feet - 2" deep
  324 square feet - 1" deep
  The formula is: Depth of material in inches divided into 12...Take that number and multiply it by 27...this will give you the number of square feet that one cubic yard of material will cover at that depth.
  
  Flagstone/Stepstone coverages per ton (apprx.):
  1" minus thickness - 175 - 200 sqft
  1-2" thickness - 100-125 sqft
  2-3" thickness - 70-90 sqft
  
  Building Stone coverages per ton (apprx):
  2-3" bed depth - 50-60 sqft (face)
  3-4" bed depth - 40-50 sqft (face)
  4-6" bed depth - 30-40 sqft (face)
  6-8" bed depth - 25-30 sqft (face)
  8-12" bed depth - 15-25 sqft (face)
  Note: bed depth refers to the depth of stone from the face to the back when it is laid
  
  Surface area of a CIRCLE:
  multiply 3.14 x the radius squared
  
  Pond Volume:
  Area x Average Depth + Cubic Feet x 7.5 gallons/cu ft.