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Original poster

Thatched Roof

16 replies

bellswithwhistles · 01/02/2023 10:27

Anyone got a thatched roof on their cottage? Looking to buy a cottage that has one, and I'm not convinced it's in good condition and looks like it needs redoing to me!

Cost factor is huge obviously. Any tips? Any thing I should be aware of?

Thanks.

OP posts:

overkeen · 01/02/2023 10:34

I rent a property with a thatched roof and I'd avoid at all costs - especially if the building is a typical thick walled old cottage. The house is freezing. And I mean absolutely freezing. It's 8 degrees in my bedroom. The walls are so thick, it's like living in a larder all year.

We have a lot of issues with damp, condensation and mould. It's been hellish.

We had a new roof last summer, didn't change a thing. It cost tens of thousands of pounds (thankfully not our money!), and the hassle. Took 2-3 months to do and it was horrendously dirty. I was finding thatch in my house for months.

I think they look beautiful, but I'd never choose to live in one again! 🥴

DomesticShortHair · 01/02/2023 10:34

I’ve got a thatched roof. When we bought the property, we got an experienced thatcher to come and assess the roof. He gave it around 10 years. Unfortunately, it turned out to be less than five- weather (obviously) is the biggest variable. But when the roof had been rethatched last, the thatchers hadn’t done a very good job, so it deteriorated quicker than expected.

Had the roof completely re-thatched last year. They are an expense, but no guttering or facia boards to worry about or maintain, warm in winter and cool in summer.

House insurance is a lot more expensive, and there may be limitations on BBQs, woodburners etc. For example, we have to have our chimney swept twice a year and send the certificates to the insurance company.

Original poster

bellswithwhistles · 01/02/2023 10:38

ok great, just the type of info I need.

I'm so swayed because it looks so pretty, but I'm half thinking is this why it's up for sale?!

It looks to me like it's in a bad way?

OP posts:

Pyewhacket · 01/02/2023 10:43

And the eaves are a natural habitat for spiders. I can post a photo if you like 😬!.

DomesticShortHair · 01/02/2023 10:45

It’s hard for me to tell from the picture, but thatched roofs are usually made up of the roof itself, and the ridge. The ridge lasts less than the roof, because they are made of straw to bend over the top. and they are more exposed. The rest of the roof may also be made from straw, but can also be water reed, which lasts longer. If the building is listed, or in a conservation area, you may be limited as to what material you choose.

My house was all straw, but is now reed with a straw ridge. We can probably expect the ridge to be replaced every 15-20 years, but the roof will hopefully last 60-70. Can you see the fixings poking through the roof, or lots of moss starting to grow- they are classic signs that the roof was coming to the end of its life, apparently. If not, maybe it’s just the ridge thar might need attention?

overkeen · 01/02/2023 10:48

Pyewhacket · 01/02/2023 10:43

And the eaves are a natural habitat for spiders. I can post a photo if you like 😬!.

I have never in my life seen spiders like we get in our house. The autumn months are like I'm a Celebrity!! 🫣🤣

Allthegoodnamesarechosen · 01/02/2023 10:48

That upstairs room will be very dark with a thick overhang.

On a general point, why do you think the rich have always had tiled or slated roofs when available, and the poor have had thatch? Hint: it’s not just aesthetics.

unfortunateevents · 01/02/2023 10:58

We live in a thatched barn and have no issues with temperatures in either winter or summer. However, the building is probably not a typical construction as it was only converted in 1980, so although the walls are reasonably thick, it's not your typical cottage with low ceilings and wonky walls. From both of the inside and outside it looks like a typical modern house just with a thatched roof. Apart from the fact that we are being very sparing with the heat this winter, we actually find that the temperature remains fairly constant throughout the year.

Try to find out what kind of material has been used in the thatch, ours is water reed but it's actually black sea reeds which apparently were all the rage a while ago, but have now been shown to have more of an issue with cracking in very warm weather. So far so good on ours but it's maybe something for you to bear in mind.

As other people have said, insurance is way more expensive, ours is more than three times the amount we were paying in our previous conventional home. We also had to have additional layers built on our chimney stack and a large pot put on top as it was too low for insurance purposes. Not sure how the previous owners got away with it!

I don't find significantly more of a problem with spiders, but we live in the country backing onto a wood, so that would probably contribute anyway.

LadyMargaretDevereux · 01/02/2023 11:20

A friend of mine has a cottage with thatch and one of her problems is when it rains because there are no drain pipes or guttering on thatch so the rain just pours off the roof. She has to put buckets to stop it flooding under her front door when it rains a lot.

FriedEggChocolate · 01/02/2023 11:28

If both neighbours have converted their roofs to tiles, might be worth asking if that's an option for this property.

LadyEloise1 · 01/02/2023 11:31

Do rodents live in the thatch ?
I heard that once but not sure if it's true.

esgee · 01/02/2023 17:35

I have a thatched house, it was re-done when I bought the house in 2016, with water reed, and cost £16k. It should last at leat 40 years, the ridge maybe another 15.

My whole building insurance is £80 per month with Highworth. I don't have any open fires or woodburners. The only stipulations I had from building control was that I couldn't have more than 8 spotlights in the upstairs ceilings, I don't have any, and I couldn't attach the tv ariel to the house.

Bowls of conkers sort the spiders out - it really works

I have heard squirrels in the roof (very rural) but I possess a starting pistol for sports, fired it twice and they've scarpered!

And I love to see the rain dripping of it, shows it's doing its job.

esgee · 01/02/2023 17:47

Who's is that chimney to the right OP? I can't quite make it out on the pic.

If it's not yours then I wouldn't take the risk of someone else's fire.

LibertyLily · 01/02/2023 23:05

I was so relieved when we sold our thatched house in 2014 - not least because of the ginormous spiders who didn't seem remotely deterred by the conkers we left everywhere or our three cats and two dogs!

We had a wood burner - a huge, ancient one fitted during the previous owner's time and at one point the flue (at the back so harder to notice) became detached and we had a chimney fire. It was bloody terrifying and made me all the more determined to sell up/never live in another thatch.

Ours was fairly large - the cottage was three rooms wide - and had been re-thatched a few years before we bought the place. We only owned it 3.5 years and I imagine the ridge needs doing now. The whole roof would probably be in excess of £40k - what a friend (who also lives in one) calls 'a rich man's roof'....but then he is!

WidecombeHill · 11/04/2026 23:52

You can generally replace just the ridge line and get the surface combed (not sure that's the thatchers term) to removed surface moss etc. A lot will depend on where you are and what materials were used. Here in Devon there's high rainfall and the thatch rooves are pretty mossy- we had a thatch in drier Hampshire where the moss was much less prevalent. They also tended to put unobtrusive chicken wire over the thatch to keep squirrels off. The house you've shown has a straightforward roofline, which helps- gullies, corners etc are points where wet gets in and thatch deteriorates quicker. So a complex roof plan lasts less time and is costlier to redo.
We used NFU for insurance- not cheap but very good. They stipulate certain precautions such as twice-yearly chimney sweeping, woodburner only with double-lined flue to stop the thatch superheating, no upstairs candles etc.
I wouldn't rush back to thatch but it had some nice characteristics and is a great insulator. I just disliked the water dripping off the thatch when it rained.

You can get a professional opinion from a thatcher- your vendor should be able to provide as part of your conveyancing, so you can assess likely future costs and plan accordingly.

GertieLawrence · 12/04/2026 08:44

I think they look beautiful but would avoid. There are several in our village. One was re thatched about 10 years ago for 20k and looks like it could use a redo already. One owner told me the spiders are a big problem for her. One dramatically burnt the house down, when a chimney fire sparked it. Because the latter is listed, it’s taking years to rebuild it due to issues with supplies of approved materials etc.

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