RENDERING INTERNAL WALL

[totoisacat]

I want to part render an internal wall up to about 3 feet. I want to create a 'natural' white effect that you see in places to keep to the old style of the property.
Can i just use white portland cement to achieve this in 1:5 ratio with builders sand? Do I need to add any lime? I read that i could either use lime or a 'plasticiser'. I thought the lime was to increase the drying time, to avoid cracking...
Any advice much appreciated.

 

[JerryM]

to create a 'natural' white effect

i am not sure that render is what you want. i think it's probably more like lime plaster. render is a very hard material effectively mortar.

achieve this in 1:5 ratio with builders sand?

i've not seen/come across a sand which with the white opc would give the required natural white colour. building sand and washed plastering won't.

lime is added to make the mortar more flexible but so does plasticiser so i guess it's down to personal choice.

i do cover the rendering i do with finish plaster so i don't know for sure on the cracking using plasticiser (which i use) but would expect the plaster to crack if the render did and it doesn’t. also i generally leave the render a few days to dry out before plastering and i've never seen any sign of cracking. cracking would be important to me as i am damp proofing before rendering.

 

[Micilin]

If you can get a white washed sand (3mm down rendering sand) from a merchant's, white cement and lime will give you a white colour.

 

[Mikepeters]

You can use deco pierre which comes white and is lime based. smooth or stone effect is achievable. breathable too.