Here is an example of a french house in Normandy, made entirely from marle clay. Obviously there was no source of field stones, or ramdom stone. There are, however, some pieces of cut stone around the front door and the best room window. I took this shot in 2004, but haven't been along that road since, so I don't know what the situation is now. You can see the remains of a lime render on the gable end.
I completely forgot that pics can be pasted into the text.
Lime putty: the pic shows some I made earlier!! Six years ago, in fact. The longer tou keep it the finer the lime particles become. Just tip a bag of plain hydrated lime into a bin, top up with water, poke it around to make the water mix in. Always make sure the top is covered with a layer of water. To use it, slap it about to make it cream-up. Don't add any extra water, unless you are making limewash. For fine plaster, sieve it to remove any lumps.
Deeper holes made need to be filled and the lime mortar tapped back. A stippled brush finish is best rather than a brushed finish. Bash the surface gently with the brush head (a stiff churn brush is best).
A useful document can be found on the Historic England Web site (It can be downloaded as a pdf file). The techniques shown are for any wall in France or the UK!
I see in the original photos of this thread the guy is using a trowel. Not surprised it was a tedious process for him.
The best way of doing this is to wear big thick rubber washing up type gloves and to literally throw the chaux into the joints and then push it in with the palm of your hand until the stones are literally hidden. ALWAYS start from the bottom and work up. NOT, from the top down.
The top will will dry quicker than the bottom so you can start smoothing the joints with a wire brush, soft brush and then Sponge working from the top downwards. You could do that wall in a couple of hours.
Also, NEVER go grey with the chaux colour. It looks horrible.
Using a trowel is fine, but to do it properly with a trowel you are supposed to ‘throw’ the chaux into the joints…not scape it in. Which takes a lot of skill. I think you will find washing up gloves and using your hands ‘throwing it in’ is better and more accurate !!!
Filling the joints with a trowel is a complete waste of time.
Jointing old stone walls is an art.
Number of other points.
No mortar…should be banned in old buildings.
Always mix the chaux by hand and not with a mixer. They should be banned to.
James… you have caused great consternation in my household… I am wandering around tapping the walls to see if we (by that I mean OH) can expose some stonework… He is not too keen on me finding him yet another job to do…
I have done a huge amount of pointing, inside and out, during the past 22 years. As I said I prefer a small trowel. Personal preference, grandmother, eggs.
I disagree about lime pointed walls being a pain in the neck and collecting dust that is almost impossible to get rid of. My French house has far less dust than any of the fully carpeted houses that I lived in in other countries and a little spring cleaning with a vacuum cleaner easily removes any dust that might have settled on the walls along with the occasional spider’s web. Exposed stones with lime pointing us a great way to control damp in old walls; far better than hiding it behind insulated placo.
I have done loads of pointing too over the past ten years, 2 parts yellow sable rivière to 1 part NHL 3,5 (pure blanc or naturel), always use a cement mixer and always use a small trowel. Just need to be careful when adding the last touch of water, can go from being a perfect mix to slop very easily.
Just finished the front of my house if anyone is interested.
You kinda answered the question yourself when you said about adding to much water. Too much water and it becomes very sloppy and sometimes unusable. You can keep an eye on the mix when doing it yourself.
I think mixing it yourself also gives a more homogenous mix. OK, it is hard work but it is good for the abs and keeps you fit.
My turn, when you said you used a small trowel, how did you apply the chaux to the joint ?
Good work by the way. It is very nice pro job.
Also, your ratio is 2:1. Others on this thread say 3:1. I go for 2.5:1
Personally, I find mixing by hand and pita, much prefer the mixer. I use a small trowel and spot board, push the mix in as far as I can, add a bit more if needed. There is quite a knack to get it right and you do need a lot of confidence in your mix and technique or you can end up with a lot on the floor ( I still manage to get a lot on the floor). I was quite lucky doing my house, my son (mainly) had the knack of getting the mix right (he thought he was having a holiday from the Navy- yeah right )
I’ve certainly never had a problem using a mixer, I know what I want the mixture to look like in the drum and keep adding water slowly until it’s falling correctly.