Stone carpet flooring is extremely robust and resilient, offering exceptional durability. When sealed, it’s nearly indestructible indoors — even resistant to office chair castors. Outdoors, it’s also highly long-lasting. Natural wear from use and weathering can be refreshed with a PU topcoat every few years, making stone carpet a virtually timeless solution for balconies, terraces, or entry stairs.
Yes, stone carpet offers slip resistance and is rated R9 or R10 depending on the grain size and finish. This makes it suitable for all residential applications and many commercial uses.
Note: Commercial entrance stairs to business premises typically require an R11 slip rating. For legal safety, stone carpet should not be used in these specific cases. The only exception is commercially used entrance stairs to business premises: Here, a slip resistance of R11 is required, meaning that stone carpeting should not be used in order to be on the safe side legally.
Thanks to its surface texture — whether open-pored or sealed — walking on stone carpet is very comfortable. Especially barefoot, it feels almost like a foot massage, without being rough or sharp.
In fact, a stone carpet consists of at least 90% natural stones. We use high-quality epoxy or polyurethane resins as binders in proportions of 6-10%. It can therefore be said that 90-94% of a stone carpet is a natural product made from quartz or marble granules.
Yes, stone carpet is UV-stable. For outdoor use, we only use natural, uncolored quartz or marble granules, combined with a 100% UV-stable polyurethane resin.
For indoor use, PU-colored quartz can also be used, combined with a low-yellowing epoxy resin with high UV resistance.
No, all of our binders are solvent-free.
Stone carpet is very easy to maintain. Indoors, it is sealed, so regular vacuuming is usually sufficient. You can also wipe the surface with a microfiber cloth or mop, which effectively cleans the texture of the stone.
Liquids and spills cannot penetrate the sealed surface and can be wiped away easily.
In unsealed outdoor areas, stone carpet can be cleaned using a pressure washer. One annual cleaning — typically after winter — is often enough. Maintain a distance of around 20 cm from the surface or use a terrace-cleaner attachment.
We also offer special cleaning products designed for stone carpet.
Stone carpet is heat-resistant up to 80 °C. Since steam cleaners usually operate at around 100 °C, we do not recommend using them on stone carpet surfaces.
Yes, stone carpet is resistant to de-icing salt. After the ice has melted, the salt should be thoroughly rinsed off with water to keep the surface clean.
The minimum layer thickness for a stone carpet is 6 to 8 mm, depending on the grain size. The layer thickness can easily be increased if needed.
Each layer (primer, optional waterproofing, the stone carpet itself, and optionally a pore sealer for indoor use) needs around 24 hours to cure and is then fully load-bearing. Wet cleaning is possible after 7 days.
Once mixed, the material typically has a working time of about 30 minutes before it starts to thicken. In hot weather (summer), the working time may reduce to 15–20 minutes per batch.
Stone carpet is available in various grain sizes. Natural and colored quartz typically come in 1–2 mm or 2–3 mm. Coarser grains are available upon request. Marble granules are commonly available in 2–4 mm, and 4–8 mm is also available on request.
Outdoors (e.g. on balconies or terraces), the substrate beneath the stone carpet must be waterproofed. The stone carpet itself is water-permeable — like a drainage layer — and is therefore completely frost-resistant. Indoors, a pore sealer should be applied to make the surface impermeable to liquids.
Yes, thanks to its open-pored structure, stone carpet is 100% frost-resistant outdoors. The substrate is sealed against water, and the carpet layer allows water to drain through like a filter layer. If water freezes within the carpet, the ice can expand freely between the pores — without damaging the surface.
No — in outdoor applications, the stone carpet must always remain open-pored. This is what ensures its complete frost resistance. To refresh and reinforce the surface after many years (typically after 8–12 years), we recommend applying a light PU topcoat. This maintains the open-pored structure while increasing stability.
Our high-quality RISTO® stone carpets are laid exclusively by trained specialist installers. This guarantees precise workmanship and a long service life for your floor.
Improper installation can lead to processing errors that result in a loss of quality and reduced durability. To ensure that your stone carpet retains its beauty and functionality for decades to come, we offer professional installation by our experienced team. Alternatively, we will be happy to put you in touch with a certified RISTO® partner in your area.
Are you a craftsman and would like to learn how to lay flooring yourself? You can find all the information about our training courses here.
The substrate must be stable and load-bearing. It should not have untreated cracks or be subject to movement. In outdoor areas, a slope is required for proper drainage. Suitable surfaces include screed, concrete, solid tiles, exposed aggregate concrete steps, or natural stone. Unsuitable substrates include paving stones, loosely laid slabs, compacted soil, or similar surfaces.
Stone carpets should not be applied directly to wood, as wood tends to move easily. An exception to this is for interior wooden staircases, which are very suitable for covering with stone carpets. The individual steps are separated with profiles, and then (with primer) the stone carpet can be installed directly onto the wooden stairs. Otherwise, the following applies to stone carpets on wooden subfloors (e.g., parquet): Stone carpets should only be laid floating on a separating layer, without any contact with the wooden subfloor. For this purpose, a high-quality fleece can be used, for example, as a separating layer. Additionally, the layer thickness of the stone carpet should be increased by at least 4 mm to 10–12 mm, depending on the grain size. This means that the stone carpet can also be laid floating on a slightly moving wooden subfloor. The area without joints should ideally not exceed 30–40 m².
The standard tools include trowels, screeding blades, plastic floats, and release agents to ensure smooth tool movement. You’ll find a complete selection in our shop under “Tools & Accessories.”
Yes, damaged areas can be easily repaired. Smaller damages (about the size of a coin) can usually be made invisible by drilling out and refilling the spot. Larger repairs can also be done by reapplying the stone carpet material, although slight color variations may occur between old and new material — especially on older surfaces.
Stone carpet is a seamless, homogeneous surface. Only existing joints in the substrate (e.g. expansion joints in screed or transitions between rooms) must be mirrored in the stone carpet.
Yes, that’s easily possible. You can mix and match the individual colors of the stone carpet in endless variations, easily creating your own favorite floor.
Yes, stone carpet is certified with fire classification A2 FL-s1, making it suitable for use in areas around fireplaces.
Even when sealed with a pore sealer, stone carpet retains some surface texture and does not become completely smooth. With daily exposure to water and shower products, residues may accumulate over time if the area isn’t cleaned thoroughly and regularly. For this reason, we do not recommend using stone carpet in shower areas due to the increased maintenance effort.
In garages, stone carpet must remain open-pored and should not be sealed with a pore sealer, as tire plasticizers may react with the sealer. However, an open-pored surface in a garage — where dirty cars are parked and moved daily — can be difficult to keep clean. Therefore, we generally advise against using stone carpet in garages.
Yes, coating stairs with stone carpet is an excellent way to give old, worn steps a fresh new look — without the need for a complete rebuild. The structural integrity of the stairs must still be intact (e.g. concrete, exposed aggregate concrete, natural stone, or solid tiles).
The result: a completely renewed and visually upgraded staircase using the existing structure.
Absolutely. Stone carpet is the ideal surface for balconies and terraces thanks to its 100% frost resistance, high slip resistance, seamless finish, and low maintenance.
All you need is a stable, load-bearing substrate with a slope for drainage. The surface is ground, primed, waterproofed, and then coated with stone carpet. The result is extremely foot-friendly and durable — truly a perfect solution for outdoor areas.
Do you want to lay stone carpeting? Order high-quality materials directly online in our B2B store for tradespeople or visit our training course!
Do you want stone carpeting for your home, office or commercial space? Request a non-binding offer – we will be happy to advise you!
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