Lime Rendering
This room was entirely rendered with two coats of lime and Hemp.
The base coat was a mixture of lime and Hemp cut coarsely.
This was applied by hand and the surface was left rough so as to allow a ‘key’ for the finishing coat.
This coat was left to dry properly before the top coat was applied. The base coat has very good thermal characteristics and insulates the walls well.
The top coat was a mixture of lime and finely chopped hemp.
The finish was textured but smooth. It was applied using a plasterers float and was left to dry partially before the final smoothing was done.
A natural colourant was added to the mix to give the desired effect.
Two types of lime where used, a different type of lime for each coat. The reason for this is that the absorbtion of water through the lime acts at different rates and so the surface stays hard to the touch. Both types of lime give out the moisture they have absorbed when the air is drier than they are. Consequently, when the atmosphere is damp or wet, the walls absorb some of this moisture.
A lime and hemp wall not only gives an effect which is stable and beautiful, it also functions through all the seasons.
I am about to cary out work where we want to render using NHL 3.5…i have some understanding of the use of lime render…in order to meet deadlines on the job i need to render before fixing the window frames, these will be set back leaving a 4″ external reveal…can i use plastic/ metal angle beads to form the corners of the reveal, allowing me to render the reveals later once the windows have been fitted? thanks for your help
The simple response to this question is yes. The lime render can be stopped at the corner bead and the reveals can then be finished after the windows have been fitted. Many people choose to round the external corners of the rendering, giving a softer appearence, but this wouldn’t be very practical in this instance. Happy renovating…..