My man cave build - UK edition

[Captain Ahab Jr]

Thanks Bill, we're in the Cotswolds, quite a few thatch roofs in the village, some new houses still use it, the largest thatched roof in Europe has just been built in the next village and it's a big house!

No man cave update but here is a limited edition one time only thatch roof neighbor edition update!

While I restored the front of my house I was very privileged to watch this work. Was last done 30 yrs ago and the ridge replaced 12yrs ago. It's lasted very well.

A gang of 3-4 guys (unfortunately no hot roofer chicks turned up ) worked on it for 2.5 weeks and I think they did an amazing job. Not my house so I get all the pleasure of looking at their finished job without the expense of maintenance

First job was stripping off the old thatch and it's even recycled, The guys were saying the old thatch can be up to 6ft thick as sometimes new thatch was just put on top of old



They did one half at a time, just in case it rained. Straw is used and is specially grown in the UK for thatching as it needs to be long



Ridge is done last, then the lower edge was given a trim, to stop the birds stealing it for nests it's completely covered in chicken wire mesh and then finally a small bit of mortar around the chimney to keep everything water tight



Wish I'd taken pictures of their tools as they were all home made or past down through the family and called cool names like a 'wibbler'

[Seahawk]

Originally Posted by Captain Ahab Jr

No man cave update but here is a limited edition one time only thatch roof neighbor edition update!

Thank goodness - this thread was getting stale!

The pictures of the thatch roof repair are terrific, thanks for posting them...your neighbors place looks great.

All the best, Captain and Mrs...look forward to your updates!

[Captain Ahab Jr]

Originally Posted by Seahawk

Thank goodness - this thread was getting stale!

The pictures of the thatch roof repair are terrific, thanks for posting them...your neighbors place looks great.

All the best, Captain and Mrs...look forward to your updates!

Paul, this thread is well past it's sell by date so thought it would be of interest, can't be too many 300yr old thatched homes in the USA.

Sorry, no man cave update this week, Mrs Ahab is busy lowering here garden wall which is looking great and I'm back to only 2 days a week man cave time

[Scott Douglas]

Nice job on that roof. That cutout for the window on the right looks a little toooo perfect for that style of roof though.
I enjoy your updates too.

[Captain Ahab Jr]

Originally Posted by Scott Douglas

Nice job on that roof. That cutout for the window on the right looks a little toooo perfect for that style of roof though.
I enjoy your updates too.

Thanks Scott, as soon as I saw the window detail I thought it looked like Wendolene Ramsbottom who is Wallace's girlfriend in the animation the 'Close Shave'

[Scott Douglas]

Good one!
So, do they weave the thatch or ?
And is it that deep, like what we're seeing at the window cutout?

[astrochex]

That thatched roof is beautiful.

Is there any treatment to prevent it from catching on fire?

[Captain Ahab Jr]

No weaving, straw is held in place with bent green sticks, like a natural U-nail, hammered into the old thatch and yes it's about that deep

As they go along they tap the ends of each straw bundle with a big square ping pong bat type tool to make it all smooth, no trimming other than at the bottom

Astrochex I asked this question, no fire resistant treatment done but they do on some houses

[Scott Douglas]

That's pretty amazing, it looks like it's covered in some sort of 'mud' for lack of a better term, and yet it's so smooth.

[tevake]

Windolene Ramsbottom, ha, too funny!

That thatching process is so cool to see. It does seem to largely be a family business going down the generations.

I recently saw a bit about the trade on a new favorite TV show.

It's an English show called " Escape to the Country ".
Basically a realestate show about urbanites looking to move into the county.
The episodes take place all over the UK. And they do a good job of orienting the viewer to the area in each episode, with lots of scenic shots of each area.
The clients are mostly looking for charicter properties. So all sorts of buildings from the 1500s thru the late 1800s show up. From converted stone barns to large brick Georgian manor houses. They find really fascinating places, such as a fog horn keepers house on a seaside bluff etc. which to the American viewer are ancient and interestingly updated.

Also in each show they do a segment on local history and special local crafts.
That's where the segment on thatching came in.

That old picture of your neighborhood looks so like some of the old small villages they feature in their shows.
It's a very worthwhile watch.

Let me add Capt. That your stone matching and installation work on the lower front of your house are impeccable, well done.

Cheers Richard

[tcar]

Originally Posted by tevake

....That old picture of your neighborhood looks so like some of the old small villages they feature in their shows.
It's a very worthwhile watch.

That street scene is very, very common in the Cotswolds. Also, it seems like everything there is built with that same stone.

We have 3-400 year old buildings here (NM) built by the Spaniards, but not thatched roofs.

[john70t]

Really enjoying this thread.

[Captain Ahab Jr]

Thanks John, I'm enjoying posting the updates

This update is all about Mrs Ahab's project which has kept her busy for a few weeks

As we intend to lower the driveway down to make all the various levels work together better than the original plans her curvy garden stone wall she built needs about 20" or 0.5m adding to the bottom of it.

First job was dig out and lower the ground, then put down a shallow concrete base. The ground is mostly stone so it was a pick axe and demolition hammer job instead of an easy dig with a spade. The stone in the pic was her just practicing



I helped a little by cutting and chiseling back the original footings which was made from very dense concrete blocks. Dusty, horrible job but much easier than digging



Then Mrs Ahab laid 5 courses of fresh stone with a bit of concrete behind to join up to the bottom of the original wall





Mrs Ahab quite often doubts she has the skills for building work but in reality she is better than very good. I just let her get on with it and try to keep out of her way so as not to slow her up

As we would like to add some lighting around the driveway I bought a 50W halogen up lighter to see how it would look. Think a few of these all around will work well but we'll probably dim down the bulb brightness a notch



In other news our builder should (fingers crossed) be back on site next week to work on the man cave entrance pillars

[!pse203]

truly amazing and beautiful work - you and the Ms.

[GH85Carrera]

Originally Posted by Captain Ahab Jr

Paul, this thread is well past it's sell by date so thought it would be of interest, can't be too many 300yr old thatched homes in the USA.

Sorry, no man cave update this week, Mrs Ahab is busy lowering here garden wall which is looking great and I'm back to only 2 days a week man cave time

As everyone keeps saying, just an amazing quality of work you and the wife are doing. Such a cool looking place.

I am curious, obviously the thatch roof holds up well to rainy GB weather but what keeps insects from setting up a home in the straw?

There are no 300 year old structures in Oklahoma for sure. Oklahoma City did not exist until Monday, April 22, 1889. There are very few structures from that century remaining.

I suspect a thatch roof would not do well with our winds. We had 50 MPH winds last night from a collapsing thunderstorm. Some areas had 60+ MPH winds.

Keep up the good work, and please keep updating the thread.

[madcorgi]

Wonderful work--the rock wall is beautiful. We spent a week in the Cotswolds back in 2016, and it was a truly beautiful area.

[livi]

Fantastic work and an all over beautiful setting. I am almost expecting to see Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby walking by.

[mgatepi]

Truly amazing! Definitely a type of construction not so common here in the states. Capt., I must ask, by Mrs Ahab building, do you mean she stands over and directs the guys doing the work? For this is my wife's definition of building. I cannot see my wife out there lifting and digging out rocks....May I send her to help your wife? For training purposes?

[daepp]

The work on that wall (Hell, all the work you guys have done) is simply stunning! Thank you so much for all the updates.

[911 Rod]

Outstanding as usual. No idea what you are going to do for an encore. lol

Question. Is the new bottom of the wall supporting the wall? Or is the ground undisturbed and the bottom stones just for looks? Curious.