Thatch for New Build Construction

East Anglia Master Thatchers Association National Thatching Straw Growers Association Broads Reed and Sedge Cutters Association North Norfolk Reedcutters Association English Heritage

Different types of materials Water Reed Long Straw Devon Wheat Reed Sedge Heather

Thatch: It’s Green Credentials Thatch materials have 5 KWh/m3 embodied energy Thermal Conductivity: 0.07 W/mK for straw Thermal Resistance: 300mm thickness straw = 4.28 R-value Stores between 1 & 2 ton of Carbon per 100sqm of thatch Sustainable

So what’s new in thatching..?

Thatch: Rain Screen Cladding Sectional thatch cassettes made up off site Weather and daylight construction issues reduced No scaffolding required on site Very little mess Speedy fitting of screen cladding

Cost of thatch rain screen The development cost at present is between £150 and £170 per square meter with the timber frame cassette construction

Legacy! In theory the lifespan could be in excess of 50 years Any damage can be relatively easy to repair Frames could be re-used Old thatch material can be recycled in a number of ways

The next steps Dragons support for: – Promotion of the thatching trade as a skill – Real low carbon innovation – Opportunity within the commercial sector In return, additional to the innovation, we are…

Training of new thatchers CSkills has recently included thatch cladding within the Thatching NOS framework for NVQ These are new skills to be used in conjunction with roof thatching proper Thatchers need certification support to help them move into new build and innovation developments

Moss & Lichen?