Tadelakt
Designation
Lime-based tadelakt
Features
Tadelakt comes from Morocco, and more specifically from the city of Marrakech. It can be considered a stucco because it has a tight, smooth, shiny finish. The essential characteristic of tadelakt is that it can be applied to rounded shapes. The lime used in Morocco is not commonly found in France, it has a specific formulation, it is a partly hydraulic lime with incisions and overcuts. This gives it a non-soluble granulometry, but in insufficient quantity to compare it to a standard rendering.
Materials & Equipment needed
Ingredients :
- Air lime or NHL2 hydraulic lime
- Sand 0/1 or marble powder 0/0.6
- Finer grained marble powder
- Chalk or talc
- Pigments
- Black soap
Tools :
- 200 x 80 mm mini platinum smoother
- 80 mm stucco trowel
- Small mason’s trowel
- Plastic horn
- Granite pebble
Substrates:
Lime-sand rendering (rough, liquid gobetis) or lime-marble powder (minimum grain size 0/1 mm) with a perfect float, no smooth areas. We strongly advise against working on closed surfaces, especially in wet areas. Moisten the substrate well before starting. If the surface is particularly absorbent, remember to wet it thoroughly.
Application
Composition :
1 volume of air lime or 1 volume of NHL2 hydraulic lime for 1 volume of fillers (mixture of grain sizes, from 0/1 mm for the largest to impalpable). Add pigments and water. The consistency should be that of a firm paste.
OR :
Mix Marrakech lime with 70% water and leave to soak for at least 24 hours. After soaking, the coating should have a soft consistency. Add pigments (up to 15%).
Recipe (Marrakech lime):
Moisten the substrate.
Apply the rendering with a trowel (5 mm thick) and allow it to pull a little.
Trowel the rendering to remove the laitance.
As soon as it begins to set, tighten the coating with the edge of the trowel.
Start tightening with the roller when the plaster no longer marks under your finger. Sanding is carried out in circular movements.
Smooth with a plastic spatula to remove the water from the mortar.
Repeat the last two steps several times to strengthen the cohesion of the tadelakt’s micro-particles so that it is compact and therefore more resistant.
The next day, rewet the tadelakt with black soap diluted in water (20%) and sand with a roller to tighten the mortar permanently. Remove any excess soap with a spatula.
Finishing, after complete drying (several weeks), apply a natural wax and polish with a soft cloth to complete the waterproofing of the tadelakt and make it shine like marble. Waxing is an aesthetic choice.
Recommendations: For maintenance, dilute black soap. Do not use scouring cream or limescale remover.
Recommended Book
Le Tadelakt, une technique millénaire d’enduit à la chaux, Jamal Daddis, Edisud