Whether it is a few bundles for a patch or a truckload for a new roof, our free service makes it easy to price Cape reed in Free State. Your request goes to a reed supplier serving towns and cities across Free State.
Cape Reed Thatch in Free State
Want Cape reed in Free State? Say whether it is for a roof or a ceiling, the size, and whether old reed or grass must come off first. Suppliers and thatchers who work with reed in Free State and around Free State can then quote, with transport shown separately where the reed travels far.
New to this? Read the Cape reed guide for the choices and the points worth checking before you agree to a quote.
Free State notes on materials & supplies
Grass is cut on eastern Free State farms in winter after it has seeded and dried, so buyers here often deal with farmers or local suppliers directly. Ask about bundle length, how clean the butts are and how it was stored. Treated <a href="/gum-poles/">gum poles</a> and laths come from yards in Bloemfontein, Bethlehem or Gauteng. On farms surrounded by grassland, a <a href="/thatch-fire-retardant/">fire retardant</a> is a common add-on.
Thatch in Free State
Much of the thatching grass that roofs Gauteng is cut on Free State grassland, especially in the eastern Free State around Bethlehem, Harrismith, Reitz and Vrede, so supply here is close at hand. The thatch you see is varied: guesthouses and holiday cottages in Clarens and the Maluti foothills, farmhouses and workers' rondavels across the maize and cattle districts, lapas in Bloemfontein gardens and resorts along the Vaal near Parys. Weather is harsh in both directions: summer thunderstorms with lightning and hail, and cold, dry winters with frost and grass fires. Welkom and Sasolburg are mining and industrial towns with little thatch beyond garden lapas and smallholdings, so crews are often based in Bloemfontein, Bethlehem or Gauteng.
Typical Cape reed requests in the area come from:
- Farms and smallholdings: re-thatching an old homestead in reed to keep it true to its age
- Guesthouses and B&Bs: reed ceilings and roofs on winelands cottages that guests come to see
- Homeowners: a reed roof on a Cape style home or a reed ceiling in the living room or lapa
Local tips for Free State
Thatchers serving Free State mostly work from here: bethlehem, Harrismith and Bloemfontein; grass cut on eastern Free State farms. The jobs that come up most: farm lapas and rondavels, Clarens guesthouses, grass bundles for other provinces. When you ask for quotes, ask whether the grass is from this season's cut and how it has been stored.
Around Free State the largest group asking is farms and smallholdings, which usually means re-thatching an old homestead in reed to keep it true to its age. Before you agree to anything: reed length, density and the thatcher's work. Getting a crew there: grass is local; crews travel from Bloemfontein, Bethlehem or Gauteng.
Service area: Free State and surrounds
Across Free State our network reaches Bloemfontein, Welkom, Kroonstad, Bethlehem, Sasolburg, Harrismith, Clarens and the towns between them. Outside the bigger centres, ask where the crew is based and how long they need to stay on site.