philpjuk100
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Found the nearest Jewsons!it is just around the corner from the yard I use now!
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lime putty quality and how to store it?
- Thread starter robgil
- Start date
philpjuk100 said:Found the nearest Jewsons!it is just around the corner from the yard I use now!
not every jewsons sell it.
biffvernon
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I did some lime plastering a couple of weeks ago with some lime that had been stored in an opened bag in a damp shed for a year. Some of the lime was lumpy, so clearly some carbonation had taken place. How much? No idea. Let's say a quarter of it. That leaves three quarters of it just fine. Pretend the carbonated fraction is part of the aggregate so make the mixture a little more lime-rich than usual. Result: just fine and dandy.
Flyfisher
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I like your style Biff. I'm sure it must have been the sort of approach to things when our old houses were originally built, before scientific methods, chemical analysis, purity standards, engineering calcs and building control.
(of course, the buildings for which such things didn't quite work out have probably fallen down and disappeared by now!)
(of course, the buildings for which such things didn't quite work out have probably fallen down and disappeared by now!)
To get fresh hydrate and or NHL you need to ring around your local and not so local builders merchants and/or pick the brains of the builders working on old houses nearby. From memory Travis in Norwich don't sell NHL but Travis in Great Yarmouth sell a lot.
My local Halls seems to go through a pallet of hydrate every couple of weeks but don't supply NHL.
Call and ask several builders merchants about how regularly they get deliveries, if they don't know why you're asking then I wouldn't buy from them. Likewise if it's not being stored indoors I wouldn't consider it worth the risk.
I got my last lot of 2.5 NHL direct from http://www.mikewye.co.uk/ because I needed a lot which worked out cheaper and guaranteed it was stored and supplied sensibly. I have one bag left which is stored in the garage. I need to mix up a little mortar to fix some loose floor bricks and some other minor mortar repairs.
As NHL sets in the wet, what's the best way to store it once opened or is it going to be useless after a couple of weeks?
My local Halls seems to go through a pallet of hydrate every couple of weeks but don't supply NHL.
Call and ask several builders merchants about how regularly they get deliveries, if they don't know why you're asking then I wouldn't buy from them. Likewise if it's not being stored indoors I wouldn't consider it worth the risk.
I got my last lot of 2.5 NHL direct from http://www.mikewye.co.uk/ because I needed a lot which worked out cheaper and guaranteed it was stored and supplied sensibly. I have one bag left which is stored in the garage. I need to mix up a little mortar to fix some loose floor bricks and some other minor mortar repairs.
As NHL sets in the wet, what's the best way to store it once opened or is it going to be useless after a couple of weeks?
biffvernon
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Store NHL in the dry. It will last a long time. I really think there is too much panic about all this. Hence my example of using seriously gone off lumpy lime.
When a bag of lime comes out of the factory it will be perhaps 95% calcium hydroxide Ca(OH)2. As it reacts with carbon dioxide from the atmosphere it will change to calcium carbonate (go off). This process happens quickly (days and weeks) if damp but much more slowly if dry. If the CO2 in the air can't get to it, for example when it is in an unopened plastic lined bag nothing much will happen for a much longer time. And as the carbonation process takes place in an opened bag in a damp shed don't think it will all go off at once. The 95% Ca(OH)2 will gradually go down, 94,93,92.... Hey you can still use it when the numbers are 50, 40, 30... Just use a richer mix. It'll set harder than mud and mud is good enough for most domestic purposes. Of course if you are doing important work - repairing that ceiling coving or re-pointing the chimney stack then you'll need the best there is. Pop down to the nearest builders' merchant and drop the lime into a bin of water if you are not going to use it very soon.
When a bag of lime comes out of the factory it will be perhaps 95% calcium hydroxide Ca(OH)2. As it reacts with carbon dioxide from the atmosphere it will change to calcium carbonate (go off). This process happens quickly (days and weeks) if damp but much more slowly if dry. If the CO2 in the air can't get to it, for example when it is in an unopened plastic lined bag nothing much will happen for a much longer time. And as the carbonation process takes place in an opened bag in a damp shed don't think it will all go off at once. The 95% Ca(OH)2 will gradually go down, 94,93,92.... Hey you can still use it when the numbers are 50, 40, 30... Just use a richer mix. It'll set harder than mud and mud is good enough for most domestic purposes. Of course if you are doing important work - repairing that ceiling coving or re-pointing the chimney stack then you'll need the best there is. Pop down to the nearest builders' merchant and drop the lime into a bin of water if you are not going to use it very soon.
rebeccac
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We have been using Italian Hydrated lime ( 2.60 euros a 25 kg sack - sorry!) to make lime putty for 4 years now and not had a single problem.It's important to add lime to water not other way around and I use a whisk on the drill to mix up really well,then mix again the 2nd day.
I nearly always store it for 3 months or more before using but that's usually because we are not out in Italy full- time.To test the putty 3 years back i made a 1/3 mortar and repointed on an exposed wall -its still there despite freezing temps and sun over 45 degs!No sign of cracks,powdering etc.
I nearly always store it for 3 months or more before using but that's usually because we are not out in Italy full- time.To test the putty 3 years back i made a 1/3 mortar and repointed on an exposed wall -its still there despite freezing temps and sun over 45 degs!No sign of cracks,powdering etc.
citizensmith
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Does anyone know if bagged hydrated lime is commonly available in France and if so what is it known as?
biffvernon
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Yes it is, along with NHL of all grades - the French use much more lime than the Brits. Last time I went into a french builders' merchant there were more pallets of lime than of cement.citizensmith said:Does anyone know if bagged hydrated lime is commonly available in France and if so what is it known as?
la chaux
Mike Wye makes note of Castle Natural Hydraulic Limes on their price list. I also bought Castle branded hydrate locally in the UK so it might have the same branding.citizensmith said:Does anyone know if bagged hydrated lime is commonly available in France and if so what is it known as?
Castle appears to be made by Heidelberg so another brand to look for.
http://www.heidelbergcement.com/global/en/company/products_innovations/building_materials.htm
biffvernon
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Of course some would prefer to avoid the globalization of the building industry evidenced by the Heidelberg Group and would prefer to source their lime from an independent firm with a long track record of ethical business such as Singleton Birch.
Ho-hum.
Ho-hum.