What Makes A Good Thatcher Great?

Thatching as a building tool has existed for centuries

, but yet there are only a handful of truly skilled Thatchers around. This is because it takes more than a passion for building and thatching to make a good thatcher, it takes dedication to the art form and a life of constantly improving ones thatching technique.

In South Africa there are a number of people that are viewed as master thatchers because of their experience and dedication to the craft. This is thanks to South Africa having a well established thatching industry and also being one of the few countries in the world that has a thatching governing body. This governing body is known as the Thatchers Association of South Africa or TASA for short. They, in conjunction with the CSIR, set up thatching specifications that were adopted as the National Standard for thatch roofs by the South African Bureau of Standards.

Quality Workmanship is the Mark of a True Thatcher

A master thatcher offers quality workmanship to all of his or her clients, but that is not the only thing that makes them different from the rest. They also need to offer impeccable work standards and expertise. This means that they should at all times:

Hand select raw materials that are of a superior quality.

Build wooden structures are always sound. This can be done by using SANS 457-3 approved, treated Eucalyptus poles & laths. All joints then need to be bolted and then secured with nail plates on the pole ends.

Build roof structures smaller than 100 square meters with rafters spaced at a maximum of 800 mm apart and lathes at 240 mm apart

Build larger structures under the supervision and direction of structural engineers. They should dictate roof designs, pole diameters as required.

Only thatch of 180 - 230 mm in thickness should ever be installed.

Provide a dedicated project manager for each thatch installation. This project manager should be present at all times on the construction site if thatch work is being done.

Be willing to guarantee their workmanship.

The Best Thatching Materials

As mentioned above a master thatcher needs to use the best raw materials. Luckily in countries such as South Africa these materials are abundantly available. They include both grass and reed thatching materials such as Hyperphilia and Thamnochortus Insignis (South African Thatch Reed).

Please Note! Thatch grass is a more economical alternative to thatch reed. Because of this it is common practice to use thatch reed only for the ceiling or "spray layer" outside of the indigenous growing areas of the Cape Reed.

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