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Roofing trainee: Claas Friedrichsen in front of Bunden with thatch
Photo:
Maria Feck / DER SPIEGEL
When Claas Friedrichsen goes to work in the summer, he knows that it can get hot like a sauna.
The 22-year-old covers houses with thatch.
These are reeds, and they reflect the sun's rays.
"When we have 30 degrees, it is easily 10 to 20 degrees more on the roof," says Friedrichsen.
"You drink four or five liters of water in an eight-hour day."
A tough job - hardly anyone wants to learn it anymore.
Prospective roofers have to specialize in their third year of apprenticeship, for example in waterproofing or energy technology.
Only six out of around 2000 apprentices ultimately chose Reet, according to the Central Association of the German Roofing Trade.
According to experts, there is a high need for young talent.
Reet is evidently the trend
Reet is trendy, says Hans-Hermann Ohm, head master of the thatched roofers' guild of Schleswig-Holstein: »Reet used to be a sign of poor housing.
But that has changed significantly in the last few years. "
Thatched roofing has been an intangible Unesco cultural heritage since 2014.
Because reeds have always grown increasingly in the north, thatched roofers are mainly settled in the northern federal states.
Almost 80 companies have organized themselves in special guilds in Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Lower Saxony.
Claas Friedrichsen will start his third year of apprenticeship in August, in which he will choose to specialize in thatch.
He knows he's an exception.
"That is probably because there are only a few specialist companies," he says.
And you don't earn "too much money": after three years of apprenticeship, around 18 euros per hour.
"Like an air conditioner"
In the summer of 2019 Friedrichsen started his apprenticeship in the company of Guild Master Ohm, De Reitdachdecker in the Dithmarschen district.
A family business, almost 20 employees.
After secondary school, says Friedrichsen, he didn't know what to do for a long time.
"I worked in construction, sometimes here, sometimes there."
An internship finally brought him to Ohm.
He immediately liked the work there.
"I often feel like an artist," he says.
With thatch, it comes down to a sense of proportion.
"This is the only way to shape the thatch, that is the only way to achieve a straight roof." You have to deal with thatch differently than with bricks.
Even if the focus of his work is in the north - Friedrichsen has also covered thatched roofs elsewhere in Germany.
“Many customers prefer thatch because it works like air conditioning.” Because the sun reflects, it stays pleasantly cool in summer, and reed keeps it warm in winter.
Nine tons of thatch on the roof
As a rule, Friedrichsen and his colleagues put thatched roofs on single-family houses.
About eight to nine tons of material are needed for 200 square meters.
"One of us on the construction site is busy throwing the thatch up, in bunches of four kilos."
According to experts, a thatched roof is about twice as expensive as a tiled roof, and craftsmen need twice as long to finish it.
In addition, thatch needs more maintenance and care than a tiled roof.
First repairs are usually necessary after about 15 years, says master roofer Peter Heinrich from Lower Saxony.
Smaller holes would have to be plugged: "Crows and magpies in particular like to pull out one or the other stalk."
Trainee Claas Friedrichsen gave it an idea.
He's thinking about starting his own business one day.
With a cleaning company for thatched roofs: "This is a niche in the market."
With
dpa
