Thread: Thatched roof

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We had an english master thatcher on here

Here in cambodia thatch is sugar palm leaves.
Cheap but only lasts about three years,ridge capping usually steel.

I am most interested in the ridge capping and how it is weaved....we need some now.

I do not like the steel sheet on top, ruins the look.

Currently we built up the thatch until it reached the top, then put the steel sheet over it, then applied 4 more sheets of thatch on top of it, so you cannot see the steel from below or outside.

But I still want to cover the ridge as this way, water can still get under those top few layers above the steel sheet and maybe sit there and rot. So need to protect the ridge completely.

Was reading this site and wondering why they were using towels....then realised it was a model they were building.... Thatched Roof Construction

Thatching information for owners, free unbiased independent thatch information from a retired thatcher 40 years experience

Originally Posted by Nawty

Don't know if there is a thread on this already, if so powers at work can merge it if they wannna.

we are building our thatch roof as we speak. pics can be seen in the Plantation thread ere..... https://teakdoor.com/construction-in-...ond-bit-7.html (Survivor Plantation....Part II...the second bit)

here also is a website I found in Bali that sells the stuff and look at the price.....

I paid 14b for mine, but its not fire treated as this stuff is supposedly, but still...crikey. http://www.balistyle.com.au/bs_brochures/alang.pdf

Anyway, anybody els know about thatch roofing, especially the english style and wondering if that look and style can be adapted to use in the tropics here with locally available grasses and materials.

Some sites say this type of roof can last decades with only the ridge section replaced every 4 years or so....how do they achieve this ??

also anyone know how to weave the ridge cap sections, searching bali sites currently for some info and hopefully 'how to do' guidelines, but no luck yet.

From what I've seen on the net, in Bali they do the thatching in place, which means there's no sheets, just had fulls of grass (thatch) tied to the peices of bamboo (batons) on the roof. I imagine there's special techniques for doing ridges, but doubt Thais can do it.

I reckon your best bet would be to try and find some hill tribe/Burmese as there pretty resourcefull. In the past the Thais didn't have steel or plastic sheets, so there must be some way.

Below are some pics, this work was done in Chiang Rai by Lahu, don't think they used iron on the ridges.

I will check with my mate who had the place built.

I've put up a few thatch roofs in Thailand.

I wish I knew how to get one to last more than three years.

The first time I did it just like everyone else. Spaced the panels 4 or 5 inches apart. That lasted, like the locals said, for about 3 years.

The second time I figured that by loading more thatch on, the layers would protect the other thatch. I stacked em up a few inches apart. Made for about a foot of insulation and a nice cool house.

Then it fell apart during the third year, just like before.

I've seen thatch roofs in Japan that were supposed to be 100 years old.

Could be the way they make the panels in Thailand. The customary way is to fold the grass over a stick or length of bamboo. The grass starts breaking at the fold.
From what I can see, the way they make the long lasting roofs is without folding.

But then again it might just because it's so damn hot and sunny here everyday.

We have a thatched roof on our guest house and a sala or two. Every 3 years we have to replace it. Thinking about changing to a metal roof.

I know what ya mean about putting up all that sweet grass and then finishing up with a sheet of rusty corrugated.

You can also just use the same panels of grass, fold them over at about the third point, and overlap them, back to back. They're pretty tough to tie down because you have to reach through all the thatch, but it worked.

The thatch ridge lasted as long as the rest of the roof.

Another reason thatch is replaced every three years is that when it starts crumbling the dust inside gets pretty bad.

Might have to go for a holiday to Bali and learn a bit....I am sure their roof's last a lot longer and are made properly, there seems to be an art to it over there.

The english thatched roofs are 12" thick done in either long straw varieties dating back centuries or water reeds which grow in norfolk,we used to buy reed from turkey and get it shipped to the uk because it was cheaper.Because the the roof covering is 12" thick and compacted, so it is air tight and all rainfall just runs off the service,a typical straw roof in the uk lasts 25 years and reed 50 years with the ridge redone every 10 years.You have to get a pitch on the roof to allow run off ,Im afraid i know nothing of thai grasses or thai thatching.It wouldnt be difficult to grow thatching straw here just get a bag of seed posted over, but im not sure if it would be allowed as it isnt native to thailand.

have been eating at a grass thatched roof restaurant for 7 yrs at chiang mai... to date there have been no problems that i have seen in that time..guess it comes down to building expertise.... materials used...and knowledge by your contractor... on how to put it all together ..

Originally Posted by sityparamount

.It wouldnt be difficult to grow thatching straw here just get a bag of seed posted over, but im not sure if it would be allowed as it isnt native to thailand.

no problems with seed

as for the material, UK thatch is, as you say, heavy straw or reed, a lot different to the Thai stuff

Not too sure about the ability of European Winter wheat to grow in Thailand. Also would have to be one of the old (long strawed) varieties.
In UK the ridge is formed by bending bundles of long straw over the ridge. Usually the angle is softened by adding a 'dolly', which is a tight, round bundle of straw laid along the length of the ridge.
Is there some form of native reed that would perform the same way? Thin green bamboo?
Or best of both worlds.... use wriggly tin with a cosmetic natural covering!!

Tin tends to accommodate bugs so much better, nice home for them to nestle into between the tin and thatch.

THE THATCH & THATCHING OF THE EAST ANGLIA MASTER THATCHERS ASSOCIATION
McGhee & Co. Roof Thatchers

How durable is the stuff they use to make the brushes and brooms sold everywhere??

Tell her to get on with her life......sitting around missing things that you cannot get back are counter productive.


I am trying to find out if laying the thatch the same way it is done in England could be done here and make for a longer lifespan.

Over there it lasts 30/50 years....so we have the tropics here, even if it only lasts half that, still a huge improvement.

make sure you find out about those ridge caps in Bali remember....

I spent a few hours the other day dismantling several thatch pieces and then trying several ways to plait it all into a waterproof ridgecap.

I lit a fire under it all.

Hope the thatch wasn’t on the loof at the time of ignition.

Originally Posted by Nawty

make sure you find out about those ridge caps in Bali remember....

How do you say 'ridging' in Balinese?

lidging