Project: Re-thatch of Flatlet in Chintsa

Bosazza Roofing was contracted to re-thatch a large, self-contained flatlet on a private property in Chintsa East, Eastern Cape. The original roof had come to the end of it’s lifespan – the thatch was extremely thin and not well compacted resulting in leaks.

The scope of works on this roof included:

• Replacing of several bottom-cord roof poles and rafters in the roof structure to strengthen it
• Removing all old thatch from the roof and re-thatching the roof in new hyparrhenia hirta (thatching grass)
• Application of thatch fire retardant spray

A Note on Hyparrhenia Hirta

There are many types of thatching reed and grass – the most commonly used thatch for roofing in South Africa being Cape Reed. We also use high quality hyparrhenia hirta on some projects – this species is classified as a grass not a reed, it has a hollow core and is therefore lighter weight than a reed. You can see on the images above it also has a lighter yellow colour than other thatching grasses and reeds.  Hyparrhenia growns in areas such a Mphumalanga, Natal and the Transvaal whose climate has Summer rainfall and high humidity. This thatch type therefore suits areas with a similar climate including coastal areas.

Work was completed on this project in October 2017.

Find out more about thatched roofs and homes >