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Filter Paper: Soft, Unsized Paper from Linen Rags
Filter paper is paper left soft and porous: made like ordinary rag paper but never sized, so liquid runs through it and solids stay on top. Pharmacists once used such a paper, charta emporetica, for filtering.
Beginner
Two days
Instructions
1
1
Watch: making linen paper by hand
Watch: making linen paper by hand
Old linen made into sheets with a mould and deckle.
2
2
Cut and cook the rags
Cut and cook the rags
Cut clean linen rags into small pieces. Make a lye by soaking wood ash in water and pouring off the clear liquid, then simmer the rags in it for a few hours to soften them. Rinse well.
Materials for this step:
Linen Rags1 kg
Hardwood Ash1 as required
Water1 as requiredTools needed:
Scissors
Bucket
Stockpot3
3
Beat to pulp
Beat to pulp
Beat the rags with a mallet, a handful at a time with a little water, until the fibres separate into pulp.
Tools needed:
Wooden Mallet4
4
Form the sheets
Form the sheets
Stir the pulp into a vat of water. Dip the mould and deckle, lift it level and let it drain.
Materials for this step:
Water1 as requiredTools needed:
Vat
Papermaking Mould and Deckle5
5
Couch, press and dry — no size
Couch, press and dry — no size
Turn each sheet onto a damp felt, stack felt and paper, press out the water and hang the sheets to dry. Do not size them: unsized paper stays porous, which is what lets it filter.
Tools needed:
Wool Felt Sheet
Drying Line6
6
Cut and fold to use
Cut and fold to use
Cut the sheets into circles, fold one in quarters and open it into a cone to sit in a funnel.
Tools needed:
ScissorsMaterials
3- 1 kgPlaceholder
- 1 as requiredPlaceholder
- 2 as requiredPlaceholder
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