The older style clay tiles will have been held on with wooden pegs, originally oak. These have generally deteriorated over the years, as often as the clay tile, which was originally handmade, and tend to be softer. On Listed buildings these tiles are required to remain.

The problems with matching clay tiles

This is always a difficult one, as in years gone by, systems of matching older clay tiles meant that there was a very good trade in second hand, sometimes stolen, tiles. This resulted in it not being as stringent a requirement on the rarer properties, but sometimes this doesn’t look very pretty.

Thatched roofs will not have a fascia or soffits, due to the way the thatch overhangs the building. Thatched roofs also do not need gutters and downpipes. Thatched roofs make a great insulation and sunshade, depending upon the time of year, we would add, and the depth of insulation, of course, and how well maintained it is. Wet thatch, of course, does not make good insulation, it is the air in the thatch that causes the good insulation and this goes when the straw or reed gets wet and mulches together and compresses.

We do find, what is termed as, exposed rafter feet in the older properties. These can be very awkward to decorate. They are simply the ends of the rafters that form the pitch of the roof. They actually make normal fascias and soffits look relatively easy to decorate in comparison!

A variety of timber frame constructions were used, from the cruck frame to box frame. The varieties depended upon the area and the era. Our specialist Surveyors always consider the timber framework in two categories: the structural frame and the primary timbers and then the infill timbers being the secondary timbers.

A variety of infill materials have been used in most timber frame buildings; from the earlier use of wattle and daub with a parjeting plaster, which was a lime based plaster, often with horse or oxen hair (there were many horses around in those days) and in more recent times (by recent we mean in the last few hundred years) brick infill panels have sometimes been used, sometimes in a herringbone pattern for a decorative finish. Many times an older property was rendered over, but also the timbers were left exposed. We think they were not left as exposed as frequently people have the impression, certainly they weren’t black and white, which is often associated with Tudor properties, as this, interestingly enough, was a fashion that the Victorians developed. The original parjeting render colours would have been more natural, being made up from plants, such as saffron that forms the yellows that is often used as a render in Suffolk and Norfolk, or animal products.  Being Eco-friendly is a modern term but looking at the history of buildings using local sourced materials was common in the building of homes.

In some areas of the country weather boarding was a common cladding to timber frame properties, for example, the Essex area.

What is wattle and daub?

Wattle and daub is a building material used for making walls, within which wooden strips are woven. These are usually bound together with straw, animal dung, sand, clay and soil.

What is weather boarding?

Weather boarding is a timber boarding, also known as shiplap boarding, offers a protective covering to the timber frame and therefore needs to be well maintained. It was commonly used in the Essex areas, as well as parjecting or decorative plastering.

The sole plates are at the very bottom of the structure and the wall plates are at the very top of the structure, just before the roof. In both cases they can be susceptible to rot, be it wet rot, which in turn can cause woodworm, as this is the sort of environment they like. It is very important that these are checked when you are buying a property by a building surveyor, that specialises in this type of construction.