Building a Thatch Roof House: Bushcraft Saxon House (Part 9)
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Date: 2019-09-10
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Comments and reviews: 10
red robot
if i lived in such a house i think i wd like some daylight in there. given the materials there will only be post hole archaeology to suggest the design you are working to which will not have details of upperstructure. so is it possible that saxons cd have put a trap door in the roof which cd be propped open or removed during the day and closed at night or during bad weather? there cd have been a space for such a window in the ridge line between supports with a removable cover of thatch, maybe 1m square. given saxons and others lived in such houses for a few centuries you wd think that someone wd innovate sth to solve such a basic requirement as the need for light. we arent in a position to say they didnt as the evidence is now composteating animal products means you are ok with destroying animal life and cruelty to animals during farming. however clever you may be making a house, it is all to nought if you show contempt for animal life.
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if i lived in such a house i think i wd like some daylight in there. given the materials there will only be post hole archaeology to suggest the design you are working to which will not have details of upperstructure. so is it possible that saxons cd have put a trap door in the roof which cd be propped open or removed during the day and closed at night or during bad weather? there cd have been a space for such a window in the ridge line between supports with a removable cover of thatch, maybe 1m square. given saxons and others lived in such houses for a few centuries you wd think that someone wd innovate sth to solve such a basic requirement as the need for light. we arent in a position to say they didnt as the evidence is now composteating animal products means you are ok with destroying animal life and cruelty to animals during farming. however clever you may be making a house, it is all to nought if you show contempt for animal life.
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GrainneDhu
Great addition to the Saxon house, well doneYou may (or may not) want to re-set your spars. They're supposed to be set in with the legs pointed uphill, so as not to act as a conduit for rain to seep through the thatch. It may not make much of a difference--your thatch roof may only last 15 years instead of 25. Which would be a good long timeA few years ago, I read with great interest of seeds from the base layers of straw thatched houses being grown--some of those seeds went up as the base layer of the roof in the 1300s Rather than strip all the thatching, they'd take off the weathered layers, then lay a new layer of thatch over the old base. I like to think of some archaeologist in 3000 CE finding your camp and being mightily puzzled by it all. So many eras apparently co-existing? Does that call into question our accepted timelines? Or perhaps this was an area with ritualist significance in religious ceremonies?
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Great addition to the Saxon house, well doneYou may (or may not) want to re-set your spars. They're supposed to be set in with the legs pointed uphill, so as not to act as a conduit for rain to seep through the thatch. It may not make much of a difference--your thatch roof may only last 15 years instead of 25. Which would be a good long timeA few years ago, I read with great interest of seeds from the base layers of straw thatched houses being grown--some of those seeds went up as the base layer of the roof in the 1300s Rather than strip all the thatching, they'd take off the weathered layers, then lay a new layer of thatch over the old base. I like to think of some archaeologist in 3000 CE finding your camp and being mightily puzzled by it all. So many eras apparently co-existing? Does that call into question our accepted timelines? Or perhaps this was an area with ritualist significance in religious ceremonies?
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Gary Morley
Thanks Mike (and Graham) fascinating vid. Considering that you have never done it before. looks impressive If I was doing it myself for the first time and didn't know any better I prolly would have put the thatch the wrong way round LOl but I can see why. those reed holes would have filled with water. Does long straw go the other way round? I also watch your Dads videos, there is an old fashioned recipe of sousing whiting in vinegar, bit like Mackerel. However stick with flash frying but cover them in a quick dusting of flour Cheers guys.
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Thanks Mike (and Graham) fascinating vid. Considering that you have never done it before. looks impressive If I was doing it myself for the first time and didn't know any better I prolly would have put the thatch the wrong way round LOl but I can see why. those reed holes would have filled with water. Does long straw go the other way round? I also watch your Dads videos, there is an old fashioned recipe of sousing whiting in vinegar, bit like Mackerel. However stick with flash frying but cover them in a quick dusting of flour Cheers guys.
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CarbonBasedMayhem
For whitebait, you can batter and fry them whole, dip them in garlic mayo or whatever you fancy. You can stick them in a foil packet with a bit of garlic and butter and poach them over flame, or you can stir fry the hell out of them and then add whatever veggies and eat them with rice. Really, they're incredibly versatile and if you don't mind eating the whole fish (my wife won't eat the heads, they can be served just about any way imaginable.
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For whitebait, you can batter and fry them whole, dip them in garlic mayo or whatever you fancy. You can stick them in a foil packet with a bit of garlic and butter and poach them over flame, or you can stir fry the hell out of them and then add whatever veggies and eat them with rice. Really, they're incredibly versatile and if you don't mind eating the whole fish (my wife won't eat the heads, they can be served just about any way imaginable.
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B. M
Love watching you and your dad make these awesome things (yes and friends too) but great seeing you and dad spending such great time to, and let dad know he is funny enough without the puppet on his fishing shows which we love too Hugs from Canada, where we love making stuff too So do you have a nice wood lot with all these buildings in it a tour would be awesome to see the collection Thanks for making these videos
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Love watching you and your dad make these awesome things (yes and friends too) but great seeing you and dad spending such great time to, and let dad know he is funny enough without the puppet on his fishing shows which we love too Hugs from Canada, where we love making stuff too So do you have a nice wood lot with all these buildings in it a tour would be awesome to see the collection Thanks for making these videos
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Grumpy
These houses seem to be warm, they are basically just straw. I've seen a video of people visiting an old traditional Japanese house with a rice reed roof and the second floor (where the roof was) was very warm (it was winter, so people used to stay downstairs during summer and upstairs only at night and in winter. There were no carpets or anything, only straw tatamis, yet it was surprisingly comfortable.
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These houses seem to be warm, they are basically just straw. I've seen a video of people visiting an old traditional Japanese house with a rice reed roof and the second floor (where the roof was) was very warm (it was winter, so people used to stay downstairs during summer and upstairs only at night and in winter. There were no carpets or anything, only straw tatamis, yet it was surprisingly comfortable.
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Thomas Perez
I have enjoyed watching you and your Dad working side by side on this Thatching project today. Great work gentlemen. I really mean Gentlemen. Both are hardworking and work side by side in almost silence. Impressive work. I love the fact that it's you and your Dad. I so wish I had some good memories with my Dad. Will continue to watch you both complete the project. A Fan from Minneapolis, MN USA.
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I have enjoyed watching you and your Dad working side by side on this Thatching project today. Great work gentlemen. I really mean Gentlemen. Both are hardworking and work side by side in almost silence. Impressive work. I love the fact that it's you and your Dad. I so wish I had some good memories with my Dad. Will continue to watch you both complete the project. A Fan from Minneapolis, MN USA.
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HickoryDickory86
I would imagine the hollow reed offers better insulation than plain straw would. If so, then it wins all the stars: cheaper, easier to work with, and better insulation. That said, I love the relationship you and your dad have. I love that you two do a lot of these projects together and have so much fun with it. Not to mention keeping fit and healthy.
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I would imagine the hollow reed offers better insulation than plain straw would. If so, then it wins all the stars: cheaper, easier to work with, and better insulation. That said, I love the relationship you and your dad have. I love that you two do a lot of these projects together and have so much fun with it. Not to mention keeping fit and healthy.
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Stephen Wilde
Well worth the wait chaps, but please tell your dad. Never pull out those metal bands with bear hands like he did. A work mate did this and the band got snagged but his hands kept sliding. A lot of blood and not a pretty sight. Sorry for the nagging but it made the hair rise on the back of my neck. Looking forward to Part 10.
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Well worth the wait chaps, but please tell your dad. Never pull out those metal bands with bear hands like he did. A work mate did this and the band got snagged but his hands kept sliding. A lot of blood and not a pretty sight. Sorry for the nagging but it made the hair rise on the back of my neck. Looking forward to Part 10.
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Alela Bennett
Can't wait to see the next episode I really love your videos. I personally feel that seeing as the winters there are quite cold you need to have a way to heat the inside a bit. Just be careful with all that strawThe Saxons had a hearth for cooking and keeping warm in their houses. Maybe you guys can do something similar
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Can't wait to see the next episode I really love your videos. I personally feel that seeing as the winters there are quite cold you need to have a way to heat the inside a bit. Just be careful with all that strawThe Saxons had a hearth for cooking and keeping warm in their houses. Maybe you guys can do something similar
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