Calcium carbonate is the most abundant inorganic material, and it was used to build the ancient Mayan monuments in the peninsula of Yucatán, México. One of the most important challenges that these structures have to confront is related to water and its transport inside the stone that induces serious deterioration. In this study, the photoacoustic (PA) technique is used to monitor the water permeability of two kinds of solid and compacted powdered stones. The analysis of water permeability in stones is performed using a modified Rosencwaig PA cell. When the stones are in contact with the water reservoir, the PA signal amplitude is observed to decay gradually due to the progressive wetting of the sample. Based on this type of experiment, the water diffusion coefficients as well as the time evolution of the thermal effusivity are obtained. © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2010.