How to make lime putty

Sooner or later we may all have the need, or even the desire, to touch the walls of our home and make changes. However, not all of us are experts, so here is some useful advice. Here we will see how to make lime putty, a very refined and ancient material that is used in the painting of plaster or masonry and which has the peculiarity of making the treated walls shinier.

How to make lime putty, tips for beginners

In addition to being a beautiful decoration, lime putty is also a natural and ecological binder : in fact it is composed of water and calcium hydroxide. As far as grasselli are concerned, we distinguish two types: calcareous ones and dolomitic ones where the former contain calcium hydroxide, or only hydroxide, the dolomitic ones also contain magnesium and are a little less natural .

This material can be easily found in specialized shops or hardware stores, or you can make it yourself if you have a minimum of familiarity and equipment. Let’s see how to make lime putty. 

First of all you need limestone stones that have a crystalline structure and a percentage of impurities that is not higher than 5%. These stones must cook in a furnace for three days and three nights until they are white. If you do not have a furnace you will have to purchase the ready product.

The procedures for obtaining lime putty

Once the stones have turned white they will have to be placed inside a wooden tub or a sufficiently large basin and the water will be poured. At this point a chemical reaction occurs which reaches 800 degrees and consequently the stones crumble. By adding more water you obtain powdered slaked lime, while if you add plenty of water you obtain slaked lime. 

This has a yogurt-like consistency and a porous structure. 

Clearly, for those who are not familiar with all these procedures, the best solution is to purchase the powder or paste ready for use.