Brook cottage is thatched, and early in 2007 we had some maintenance work done on the roof. A good thatch should last 50-60 years, but it does need maintenance every so often. Most of the roof is thatched with reed, but reeds crack if they are bent, so the ridge is thatched with straw, which bends without cracking. However straw doesn't last nearly as long as reeds, and so needs to be replaced every ten years or so. Here is Frank Turbitt at work, replacing the ridge and scraping moss and lichen off the rest. He is a member of the National Society of Master Thatchers. Thatch is a wonderful insulator, and keeps the cottage very warm in winter and cool in summer.

The walls are very thick too, which helps. They are partly made of cob, ie mud: no cavity, no damp course, just tons of mud. This means there is a danger of damp, and we have a dehumidifier which we run during wet weather. You have to be careful not to overdo it though, because if the cob dries out too much, you are in danger of ending up with a pile of sand where once you had a cottage! This has probably happened over the centuries, as you see quite a mixture of building materials as you walk around the cottage.

By the way, one of our guests said that he remembered the cottage as "Quick's Farm" in his youth. We asked Frank about that, and he said that Hills Farm, which is just a couple of houses away, was farmed by John Quick until a few years ago. I don't think our cottage can ever have been a farm house itself, although it might well have been a labourer's cottage tied to the farm, or rather two cottages.