Preservation Plastering

Monument de la Constitucion

Day Four:

After two days the first layer of lime render was carbonated enough to apply the second layer of lime/sand plaster.

How was this possible without the render drying out before it cured? The secret is in the lime putty we used. This putty carbonates faster than any other lime putty I’ve used. The lime I use is 98% calcium, has a surface area of 30m2/gram, and an emley rating of 400 (a plasticity rating). The success for quick carbonation all comes down to surface area. The more surface area the lime has the greater the ability of the lime carbonating before the plaster dries out.

Hydrated Lime don't use

This is what mature lime putty looks like!

The first layer of plaster was scratched while it was green, two days before.

The first layer is applied.

The second and finish layer of plaster (render) was applied smoothed out and covered until the next day when the corners were straightened and the trowel marks removed.

The finish layer is now on.

Day Five:

This Sunday was a slow day for working. My job was to trowel the render without overworking it. This took all day. I met some great people walking through the plaza, everyone was in a great mood, wanted to take pictures of the work in progress and wanted for me to take pictures of them. Then my good friend Joe surprised me by showing up at just about lunch time. we went to a little Cuban restaurant, it was great, then toured just south of old town St. Augustine.  Love these porch columns, made from palm trunks.  Who knew.

Look at those palm tree columns

Then we went to the veterans’ cemetery where they had monuments, group and personal. It was beautifully maintained, very nice.

In: Plaster Restoration | | #