Grass Roof House Iceland

A traditional turf roof blankets a wooden house in iceland.

Grass roof house iceland.

Bustarfell turf house in east iceland. Dec 27 2017 kate bulo. Scandinavians are serious about their green roofs. A turf house is a house build with earth with a roof that consists of turf and grass.

The romans built with turf grass to create fortresses in the northern parts of their empire. The turf would then be fitted around the frame in blocks often with a second layer or in the more fashionable herringbone pattern. Icelandic turf houses long before environmentally friendly construction became popular people in iceland were constructing turfhouses. The turf house is an exceptional.

Turf roof of a house in glaumbær iceland the common icelandic turf house would have a large foundation made of flat stones. Upon this was built a wooden frame which would hold the load of the turf. The top layer of the earth is used which is soil that is bound together by grass and plant roots. The hall skáli of the turf houses is believed to be the oldest turf house hall in iceland.

But there is a reason why scandinavians like these green roofs so much. Bustarfell is a huge turf house and consists of 17 houses but each gable and outhouse counts as one unit. It has then adapted to the harsh icelandic climate providing superior insulation. Bustarfell turf house in east iceland is one of the country s best preserved turf houses and the only one of the big turf houses which is painted in a beautiful red colour.

They are not only a beautiful feature for a house. And the turf house tradition of iceland was nominated for unesco world heritage status in 2011. In fact earth sheltered dwellings have been in use since at least the iron age. The first icelandic turf houses generally had a foundation made of flat stones whereupon a wooden frame was built which had to hold the weight of the turf.

Seen today turf houses are green cloaked homes with grass on the roofs that are laid into the natural landscape.