Traditional Lime Putty Mortars & Plasters
Available in both Limestone and Oystershell Mortars, Virginia Lime Works Traditional Lime Putty Mortar is a ready to use lime mortar. The binder for our Traditional Lime Putty mortar is a lime putty that is made of high calcium limestone (95% or greater calcium carbonate) or oyster shells. Our Firing temperatures range from 1650°F (900° C) at the beginning of dissociation to 1900° F (1025°C) during the peak of the lime burning.  This wood-fired quicklime is then slaked with only water, passed through a sieve, and aged for a four week minimum.  The aged lime putty is then mixed in a roller pan mixer with a minimum of (if any) additional water to achieve a rich mortar.  It is used primarily for work in for Historic Preservation but can also be used in New Construction and Ecologically Friendly Building.  Virginia Lime Works Traditional Lime Putty Mortars offer low compressive strengths and high vapor permeability, high sulfate resistance, extended working times, and a wonderful degree of workability. 

Where to Use
Traditional Lime Putty Mortar can be used as both as masonry mortar and plaster. 

Composition
Traditional Wood Fired Lime or Oystershell Putty, Natural Sands, Synthetic Iron Oxide Pigments (for colored products).

Preparation
For Laying or Bedding Masonry:  Protect work from harsh direct sunlight, wind and rain, and if necessary freezing temperatures.  Protect sills, ledges, windows, doors, and projections from droppings and splatters.  Do not use tape or adhesives on any masonry surface.  Prevent mortar from staining the face of the masonry and or other surfaces to be left exposed.  
For Masonry Repointing:  Remove all existing cement mortar by hand.  Angle Grinders should not be used at risk of damaging historic masonry particularly when working with this product, whereas masonry joints can often be less than ⅛ of an inch.  All deteriorated mortar should be raked out to sound mortar, leaving a clean square face at the back of the joint, to which ever depth is greatest (1 inch, 1½ times the width of the mortar joints, or until cohesive existing mortar is encountered).    Care should be taken not to damage historic masonry surfaces and masonry joints should not be widened.   Debris should be removed by hand brushing, vacuuming, or pressurized air. If there is evidence of moisture retention or rising damp it may be necessary to allow the structure to “dry out”.  If this process is not done, lime leeching may occur, causing failure of the placed mortar and staining of the masonry. 
Control Absorption by wetting units or surfaces prior to application.  Surfaces and/or units should be cool and damp but not glistening or “holding water” to prevent premature drying of mortar.  On the day prior to working control absorption by thoroughly dampening substrate by fine mist spray (depending on conditions this may entail dampening for additional time).  Ensure there is no standing water or over-saturation before application.  If the substrate is retaining moisture it may be attributed to various conditions which would need to be corrected before work begins. Issues such as detailing, positive drainage, etc. should be dealt with prior to product application.

Mixing Directions 
Virginia Lime Works Traditional Lime Putty Mortars & Plasters are pre-mixed products, that require no addition of sands or aggregates on site.  It is possible for Traditional Lime Putty Mortar to be re-worked and reused for up to extended periods of time.  However, if when re-working the mortar, a significant addition of water is needed or if the material has been left out for too long, the mortar may have already carbonated to a degree to make it un-usable.  To re-work lime putty mortar, beat or ram the mortar with a pestle or “beater” and turn until the mix is to desired consistency.  Lime Putty Mortars can be re-worked in a standard paddle mortar mixer if necessary. 

Application 
Lay a bed of mortar to sufficiently create full bed (horizontal) joints and “butter” brick ends to form full head (vertical) joints. Do not move or adjust units after the commencement of set, which can cause loss of bond between mortar and masonry units.  If adjustments are deemed necessary remove both the masonry unit and the bed, and re-lay using fresh mortar. 
For Masonry Repointing:  Joints greater than ¾” should be re-pointed with an initial lift to bring the joint depth to a uniform thickness.  Pack mortar firmly against the previously placed mortar by applying firm pressure to ensure close contact between the lifts.  If pointing in lifts, roughen the surface to provide keying between applications and allow mortar to become thumbprint hard prior to reapplication.  When finishing mortar joints it is often preferable to match the original joint profile.    

Coverages and Consumption (see printable datasheet)

Clean Up
Ensure that all work is properly protected prior to cleaning.  Maintain clean surfaces on the face, sills, ledges, and projections of masonry on a daily basis, and with a trowel, strike off minor dabs of adherent mortar from masonry faces.  After mortar has achieved thumbprint hardness, lightly brush masonry to remove small mortar burrs from joints and masonry edges.  Manual cleaning of masonry can be effective by using water and soft bristled brushes to remove mortar smears. Light pressurized spray (less than 300 PSI) can be used with caution due to the fact that over saturation of the masonry could lead to moisture migration.  Virginia Lime Works™ does not recommend cleaning with masonry detergents, however, if such measures deem detergents necessary, contact detergent manufacturer for protocol when cleaning “PURE LIME MORTAR” and test the treatment in small inconspicuous areas to determine its effectiveness and to ensure no damage occurs to the building fabric.  Tools can be cleaned using conventional methods and properly protect any unused product from moisture and freezing.  Opened containers of lime putty mortar should be stored by pouring one inch of water to “seal” the mortar, in the pail.  Traditional Lime Putty Mortar stored in this manner should last indefinitely.  When it’s time to use more mortar, just pour that water off, stir the mortar to rework, and get started.

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