Craftsmanship in natural materials to measure

Why use custom-formulated lime mortars?

Formulating custom mortars allows for adjusting the grain size and type of lime (aerial or hydraulic) to the specific pathology of the wall. Unlike industrial pre-mixes, we guarantee physicochemical compatibility with the old substrate, ensuring breathability and avoiding salts or detachment.

In the world of construction and rehabilitation, especially when seeking to work with natural materials and traditional techniques, choosing the right team is fundamental. It is not just about applying a product, but about understanding the building, its needs, and how materials interact.

At Alqatifa, we offer an approach that goes beyond conventional masonry. We are a unique symbiosis: technical architects and craftsmen passionate about lime, natural gypsum, and healthy construction solutions.

But what does this really mean for your project? And why do we insist on formulating our own mortars? In this article, we break down the pillars that differentiate us and how they translate into tangible benefits for every work we undertake.

The added value of the double vision: technical architect and craftsman

Our training as technical architects provides us with a solid foundation of essential technical knowledge:

• Precise diagnosis: We understand building physics, structural principles, moisture movements (hygrothermal), and the underlying causes of pathologies (dampness, cracks, degradation). This allows us not only to treat the symptom but to address the origin of the problem.
• Material knowledge: We understand the chemical and physical properties of traditional materials (air limes, hydraulic limes, gypsums, aggregates) and their compatibility with existing substrates, which is crucial in rehabilitation.
• Integral vision of the project: We can dialogue effectively with other technicians (architects, engineers), interpret plans, and ensure that our interventions integrate correctly into the whole project.

This technical base is inseparably fused with our artisanal mastery:

• Mastery of application: We know the manual techniques, the “tempo” of materials, how to work them to obtain the best results and the desired durability. Sensitivity in the hand is not learned only in books.
• Resolution on site: Practical experience allows us to adapt solutions on the fly, facing the unforeseen events that always arise in a real work, especially in old buildings.
• Aesthetic sensitivity: We seek not only technical functionality but also the inherent beauty of natural finishes, respecting the history and character of the building.

This double vision allows us to offer solutions that are technically sound, executed with skill, and perfectly adapted to the specific context of each project.

Natural mortars to measure: alqatifa’s artisanal recipe

In a market dominated by quick solutions and pre-mixed industrial mortars, at Alqatifa we have chosen a path that recovers the essence and effectiveness of traditional construction: we artisanally formulate our own lime and natural gypsum mortars. This decision is not casual, but a declaration of principles based on the search for authenticity, health, and maximum quality:

• Total control, absolute transparency: The basis of our mixtures lies in the purity and rigorous selection of noble raw materials: certified natural air and hydraulic limes, pure natural gypsums, clean local aggregates with studied granulometry, and clean water. This is our starting point and, in the vast majority of cases, everything needed. However, our technical and artisanal knowledge also allows us to incorporate, only when the particularities of the support or the specific requirements of the intervention demand it, additives of natural origin that the construction tradition itself has validated over time. We speak of elements such as natural fibers (fine straw, hemp) to improve cohesion or reduce cracking, natural pozzolans to confer a slight controlled hydraulicity, or even natural oils or soaps in specific surface treatments. What is crucial is that each component, whether base or exceptional additive, is known, natural, and its use is technically justified. This contrasts radically with many commercial mortars that systematically incorporate synthetic additives (plasticizers, air-entraining agents, water retainers, artificial waterproofing agents, and sometimes even hidden cement) whose long-term effects on breathability, healthiness, and compatibility with old substrates are not always desirable or transparent.

• The invaluable value of natural and healthy: Our mortars are, by definition, 100% natural. This translates directly into healthier spaces:
• Real breathability: They allow walls to “breathe,” facilitating the natural evacuation of water vapor from the interior and avoiding condensation problems and the proliferation of molds and bacteria so common with plastic or cementitious coatings.
• Pure indoor environment: By containing no synthetic additives, our mortars guarantee the absence of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) and other potentially harmful emissions. They are the preferred choice for people with chemical sensitivities, allergies, or simply for anyone who values a truly healthy home in balance with nature.
• Hygrothermal comfort: The ability of natural mortars to regulate environmental humidity contributes to greater indoor comfort, creating a sense of well-being that goes beyond simple aesthetics.
• Compatibility and respect for the existing: Buildings, especially old ones, have their own “life”. Our mortars, formulated with materials geologically similar to the originals and without additives that drastically alter their behavior, present elasticity, porosity, and water vapor permeability that respects the natural physics of the substrate (rammed earth, adobe, masonry, old brick). This compatibility is essential to ensure the durability of the intervention and the integrity of the building itself, avoiding tensions and pathologies (cracks, detachments, moisture accumulation in the wall) that modern mortars, too rigid and impermeable, often generate.

Diagnosis and formulation: adapting the mortar to real needs

We do not believe in one-size-fits-all solutions. Every building, every wall, every project has its particularities. That is why our artisanal process includes:

• Support analysis: We evaluate the type of wall, its state of conservation, if it presents salts, capillary moisture, etc.
• Definition of requirements: Are we looking for a bonding mortar, a base coat, a finishing render? Is greater mechanical resistance or maximum breathability required? What aesthetic finish is desired?
• Specific formulation: Based on the above, we adjust the dosage (lime/aggregate ratio), the type of lime, and the aggregate granulometry curve (coarser sands for base coats, finer for finishes).

This “à la carte” approach ensures that the applied mortar is the optimal solution for that specific situation, maximizing its performance and durability.

The added value of Alqatifa

By choosing Alqatifa, one opts not only for a material but for an integral approach that provides tangible and lasting added value. The real difference lies not only in natural components but in how our technical knowledge and artisanal mastery combine to offer superior solutions, with direct benefits for health, building durability, and the quality of the final result:

• Unwavering commitment to health: By controlling every ingredient and systematically avoiding synthetic additives, we guarantee 100% healthy solutions. Our mortars allow walls to breathe naturally, regulating environmental humidity and actively preventing the appearance of condensation and molds, so harmful to respiratory health. We create interior spaces with exceptional air quality, free of toxic emissions (VOCs), contributing directly to the well-being and comfort of those who inhabit them. It is a direct investment in a healthier living or working environment.

• Durability based on compatibility and respect: Our technical training allows us to accurately diagnose the needs of the support and formulate a perfectly compatible mortar. This technical adaptation —choosing the right lime, correct granulometry, precise dosage— ensures optimal adhesion, avoids differential tensions, and respects the natural physics of the building, especially in old constructions. The result is an intervention that is not only aesthetically adequate but structurally respectful and much more durable in the long term, avoiding premature failures and costly future repairs caused by incompatibilities.
• The guarantee of artisanal execution: An excellently formulated mortar requires expert application to develop its full potential. Our artisanal mastery ensures that final step. Knowledge of times, careful manual application, attention to detail in finishes, and proper management of the curing process are fundamental. This expert execution guarantees not only the functionality and durability of the coating but also superior aesthetic quality, with textures and finishes that only the artisan’s hand can achieve.
• Sustainability as an inherent value: By choosing natural materials, with low processing and often of local origin, and applying them with respectful techniques, we offer solutions that are intrinsically more sustainable and have a lower environmental impact, a value increasingly important for many conscious clients.

In essence, the value of Alqatifa is not simply a product, but an integral service that merges building science and manual art to offer healthy, durable, beautiful solutions deeply respectful of existing architecture and people’s well-being.

Alqatifa: building well-being with knowledge and craftsmanship

In short, choosing Alqatifa means opting for a work philosophy where the technical knowledge of the technical architect and the expert sensitivity of the artisan converge. Our decided bet for the own formulation of 100% natural mortars is not only a choice of materials but the basis that allows us to adapt each solution to the specific needs of your project and the building itself.

We go beyond the simple application of a coating; we offer interventions designed to last, to care for the health of spaces and their occupants, and to enhance the intrinsic beauty of architecture. We believe in a more conscious way of building and rehabilitating, where quality, healthiness, durability, and respect for tradition go hand in hand.

If you are looking for a construction solution that integrates expert knowledge, high-quality manual execution, and an unwavering commitment to natural and healthy materials, you are in the right place.