Talk:Liming (leather processing)

What is a lime pit?

can anyone tell me what a lime pit is? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.40.114.75 (talk) 19:14, 5 April 2009‎ (UTC)

In medieval times (and in Turkey today, probably some other countries too), tanning "pits" were often literally a hole on the ground. More modern ones are tanks above ground.

"Lime" is a commonplace expression for almost any strongly alkaline material, usually with a large part made by roasting limestone in a lime kiln (which might be built as a pit, but is quite different!). The precise chemistry can be calcium oxide, calcium hydroxide, sometimes sulphides as well. You might also find slaked lime as topic worth looking at. Most lime kiln output was used to make building mortars, or to use as a fertiliser on fields (strict definitions might quibble if this is a "fertiliser" as such). Depending on the task and the precise nature of the lime, there could be all sorts of chemistry in there, but it's also strongly alkaline and often quite caustic.

As to its use in leather manufacture, read the article. It's generally to do with stripping something away from the part of the leather that's required afterwards: either hair, or surplus fats. Andy Dingley (talk) 22:18, 5 April 2009 (UTC)