why do houses in iceland have grass roofs

Why is there grass on roofs in Iceland? One reason is that the grass helps to insulate the house and keep it warm. Another reason is that the grass helps to protect the roof from the sun and the wind.

Full Answer

Did they ever build houses on turf in Iceland?

However, Iceland did have a large amount of turf that was suitable for construction. Some structures in Norway had turf roofs, so the notion of using this as a building material was not alien to many settlers.

Why do houses in Scandinavia have turf roofs?

They are very heavy, so they help to stabilize the house; they provide good insulation; and they are long-lasting. Turf roofs in Norway are a tradition and you will see them everywhere. Roofs in Scandinavia have probably been covered with birch bark and sod since prehistory.

What are houses made out of in Iceland?

In Iceland, with oak difficult to source, native birch was the best option available. Turf and stone bricks were then piled up and compacted in between the frame structure to form thick walls. Similar to the walls, turf and grass is used to provide an insulated roof for the house.

What to see at the turf house in Reykjavik?

It has been on display since 1952 and is to many the most glamorous of all of the turf homes in Iceland. Within its turf walls, you can find the most amazing clues into the life in the North in the old age displayed in an almost unbelievably real matter.

Why does Iceland have grass on the roof?

The turf was then laid over a timber structure to form walls and a thick roof—insulation from harsh northern climates. After the wetland plants died, dryland grasses grew over the roofs, providing further stability.

Why was Viking houses covered with grass?

The Vikings, however, had brought with them a solution: turf homes, something already popular in Norway. For the next millennium or so, these grass-roofed dwellings protected Icelanders from blistering winds, rains, and even earthquakes.

Why do houses in Iceland have red roofs?

The timber for constructing these residential and commercial premises was mostly prefabricated and imported. These timber-framed buildings had high pitched roofs and low walls, and they were tarred on the outside making them dark in appearance.

What was the purpose of turf houses?

Icelandic turf houses (Icelandic: torfbæir [ˈtʰɔrvˌpaijɪr̥]) were the product of a difficult climate, offering superior insulation compared to buildings solely made of wood or stone, and the relative difficulty in obtaining other construction materials in sufficient quantities.

What is the purpose of grass roofs?

Green roofs serve several purposes for a building, such as absorbing rainwater, providing insulation, creating a habitat for wildlife, increasing benevolence and decreasing stress of the people around the roof by providing a more aesthetically pleasing landscape, and helping to lower urban air temperatures and mitigate ...

Why do buildings have grass on the roof?

The installation of a green roof reduces the need to manage any stormwater that accumulates, as well as the stress put on local sewer systems. In urban settings, the inclusion of green roofs reduces the overall heat conducted by the buildings, covering many of the surfaces that would generate the most warmth.

How are houses insulated in Iceland?

Icelandic turf houses, like this surviving farm at Glaumbaer in North Iceland, used turf walls to compensate for a scarcity of local timber, and offered superior insulation compared to buildings solely made of wood or stone.

Why are Icelandic houses made with metal?

Invented in the 1800s, it continues to stand the test of time. The use of corrugated metal in Iceland came about as a response to natural disasters (volcanos, floods, and earthquakes), scarce wood supply (decimated by the Vikings), and catastrophic fires that ravaged the cities.

What is a Badstofa in Iceland?

A baðstofa is a living room in its most literal sense. When the Vikings first arrived, they built heated sauna rooms for bathing, but as the decades passed, more and more living was done in there until the stofa became a baðstofa, a collective living room and bedroom.

Do people still live in turf houses?

The farmstead is still inhabited and was modernized in the 20th century with new dwelling houses and stables and is still an inhabited vicarage. The old house is a part of the National Museum's Historic Building Collection and houses part of the Skagafjörður Heritage Museum.

Why are there no old buildings in Iceland?

Over time, these buildings simply decomposed into themselves and there's really nothing left except the stone barrier that drew the blueprint of the house. So over the centuries from settlement until the 1700s, most of the buildings that Icelanders built decomposed because they're made of the earth itself.

Are there elf houses in Iceland?

Built into a lava field, there are countless rocks in the town centre and gardens that are elven homes. It's also in Hafnarfjörður where you can join the elf walk to learn more about Iceland's folk lore.

How did the Vikings insulate their houses?

Long-houses often had standing timbers to carry the roof and could have either horisontal timbers or standing timbers for walls, or the earlier mentioned weaved wicker and clay (and/or dung) with straw walls. Roofs were out of birch-bark and peat, which as mentioned earlier, was a good insulator.

How did Vikings protect their homes?

The Viking Household Exterior Often the walls were lined with clay. The walls were regularly repaired by the Vikings in order to keep the wood from rotting when the climate was damp. In some areas of Scandinavia, where wood was not as easy to obtain, the exterior of the homes were made with turf.

Why was the floor of a Viking house often dug below ground level?

The floor level was sometimes dug below ground level to keep out draughts. The inside of a longhouse must have been noisy and smelly! At one end of the longhouse, there would have been a barn area.

How did Vikings heat their homes?

The house would be sectioned, ether to the sides of, or including, the corridor. Fires for cooking and heating would be lit in this corridor. Some houses had a central fire pit that served the whole house while others would have had small individual fires in each room or section.

Why were turf houses built in Iceland?

There’s two main reasons why turf houses were built in Iceland. The first was the difficult climate and the second was the lack of availability of timber and the abundance of other suitable materials including lava rock and tur f. Turf provides great insulation for buildings compared to those that are made of timber or stone alone. There was also a lack of oak trees in Iceland, which would have been the preferred timber of Scandinavian settlers. The abundance of turf however, made it a very suitable material to use instead.

Where to see turf houses in Iceland today?

There’s plenty more we could tell you about turf houses, but in truth, these magical and some would say, miraculous, buildings really need to be seen to be believed.

How are turf houses built?

The building technique for turf houses is as unique as the buildings themselves.

What does the interior of a turf house look like?

The floors would be made of wood, stone or turf.

Why is turf important?

Similar to the walls, turf and grass is used to provide an insulated roof for the house. You’ll notice that turf houses have sloped roofs. This is important. If the slope is too steep, the turf could crack during dry seasons, too flat, and the family inside could find themselves dealing with an indoor rain shower!

What was the name of the house that was built with wooden ends?

The late 18 th Century saw the arrival of the “burstabær” – a turf house with wooden ends.

What is a turf house?

Turf houses are, essentially, grass roofed houses. Turf, also known as sod, is a material consisting of grass on top of soil. It’s flexible, so can be rolled up like wallpaper. In most countries, this sod is used for gardening, but in Iceland, it can be a traditional architectural feature too.

Why do we need grass roofs?

The plants can keep warmth within the home in the winter, as well as keep the house cool during summer months. In modern times, this could reduce electric and gas bills, and even reduce carbon footprints. The vegetation also acts as a barrier to absorb the noise of the outside world, keeping life indoors quiet and peaceful.

What do Scandinavian grass roofs look like?

They look like hobbit homes or houses for fairies, but Scandinavian grass roofs are the real deal. Some are green as pasture, while others are golden in color. Some grow wildflowers, some grow trees and some have even invited the occasional goat to graze on top.

Why do Scandinavians have sod roofs?

The sod roofs support biodiversity by recreating a place for local plants to grow, even within urban areas.

How does sod roof help biodiversity?

The sod roofs support biodiversity by recreating a place for local plants to grow, even within urban areas. The roofs offer places for birds to nest and insects to breed. The vegetation on these roofs also helps to soak up rainwater, and may even reduce annual runoff by 40 to 90 percent, depending on roof design, plant varieties and roof pitch, according to the Scandinavian Green Roof Institute.

What is a green roof made of?

Modern green roofs might use water protective membranes and anti-root membranes made from synthetic materials. MORE FROM WEATHER.COM: Gardens in Unique Places.

What is an Icelandic turf house?

Icelandic turf houses ( Icelandic: torfbæir) were the product of a difficult climate, offering superior insulation compared to buildings solely made of wood or stone, and the relative difficulty in obtaining other construction materials in sufficient quantities.

How did Icelandic architecture change?

Icelandic architecture changed in many ways in the more than 1,000 years the turf houses were being constructed. The first evolutionary step happened in the 14th century, when the Viking-style longhouses were gradually abandoned and replaced with many small and specialized interconnected buildings. Then in the late 18th century a new style started to gain momentum, the burstabær, with its wooden ends or gaflar. This is the most commonly depicted version of the Icelandic turf houses and many such survived well into the 20th century. This style was then slowly replaced with the urban building style of wooden house clothed in corrugated iron, which in turn was replaced with the earthquake -resistant reinforced concrete building.

What was the primary timber used in Iceland?

30% of Iceland was forested when it was settled, mostly with birch. Oak was the preferred timber for building Norse halls in Scandinavia, but native birch had to serve as the primary framing material on the remote island. However, Iceland did have a large amount of turf that was suitable for construction. Some structures in Norway had turf roofs, so the notion of using this as a building material was not alien to many settlers.

What is the floor of a turf house?

The floor of a turf house could be covered with wood, stone or earth depending on the purpose of the building. They also contain grass on their roofs.

What is the grass house in Iceland?

Iceland’s grass-roofed houses are undoubtedly a part of the country’s persona and heritage. Through the rough climate and isolation, the turf houses kept the Vikings warm and throughout 11 hundred years until the houses, you might see today were built. Iceland might not have many ancient and grand buildings to show off like most ...

When did turf houses end in Iceland?

By the end of the 19th century , a reign of 11 hundred years of turf houses in Iceland had come to an end.

What are Turf houses made of?

Turf houses or torfbaeir as they are called in Icelandic were largely made up from flat stones, wood, turf and soil. A wooden frame would firstly be built, limiting the need for wood greatly. Secondly was the turf that would be laid down, often in a herringbone style and in two layers to seal the insulation.

Why did the turf houses have chimneys?

Those would often house a special chimney so that the smoke from the turf houses’ only fire could escape.

What is the name of the house in Iceland that people would gather in at night?

Not only did the turf offer premium insulation exceeding wood or stone but it was also much easier to come by. This resulted in almost every single farm in Iceland being made up of turf houses. At night people would gather in the largest room, the only one heated up with fire and tell each other stories, knit and make wool and skin products. Others would sing or recite poems and everyone would keep warm in this same room that everything took place in. This was called baðstofa, or basically the “bath living room”.

How many farms were evacuated during the Hekla eruption?

Still, This is a fantastic rebuilt of a farm from the settlement times that is believed to have been abandoned due to the volcano’s Hekla eruption in 1104. 22 farms are believed to have been evacuated during this eruption, leaving the fjord quite.

What is the oldest structure in Iceland?

It is an old underpass believed to have been built as an escape route during the violent Sturlung Age!

What is the roof of Scandinavia?

Roofs in Scandinavia have probably been covered with birch bark and sod since prehistory. During the Viking and Middle Ages most houses had sod roofs. Churches and other buildings with steeper roofs were covered with boards, wood shingles, or lead .

Why do you put sod down on a roof?

The first layer of sod was traditionally placed with the grass down, as the wilted grass would protect the bark from acidic humus and act as a drain . The grass of the second layer faced upwards to establish a solid surface. Grass roots would eventually permeate the bottom layer to create one solid structure. The finished roof would in time look just like a flower-studded meadow.

What is a sod roof?

Photo: Roede. A sod roof, or turf roof, is a traditional Scandinavian type of green roof covered with sod on top of several layers of birch bark on gently sloping wooden roof boards. Until the late 19th century, it was the most common roof on rural log houses in Norway and large parts of the rest of Scandinavia.

How does sod stay in place?

To stay in place, the sod must be supported by strong beams along the eaves. These logs or beams (Norwegian: torvvol) come in a variety of shapes and sizes, depending on the quality and status of the building, and on local tradition. An equivalent English term would be turf log .

Why is sod roof used in barter?

A sod roof is well suited to the dynamics of a barter economy because the materials are ubiquitous and cost nothing, although the work is labour-intensive. However, a typical household in the era that sod roofs were most common would usually have a lot of people to do the work, and neighbours would typically be invited to take part in the roofing party, similar to a barn raising in the United States. The Norwegian term dugnad denotes an established custom, where large undertakings were accomplished with help from the community.

How thick should a roof be for a dry summer?

The finished roof would in time look just like a flower-studded meadow. A total thickness of about 15 cm is enough to make the sod survive a dry summer. More than 20 cm is superfluous, and the weight would be excessive.

How thick is a foot of turf?

A naturally grown grass with a deep root system was desirable. The turf was cut into portable pieces, each about one foot (30 cm) square and about 3 inches (7.5 cm) thick, half the thickness of the finished covering.

Overview

Icelandic turf houses were the product of a difficult climate, offering superior insulation compared to buildings solely made of wood or stone, and the relative difficulty in obtaining other construction materials in sufficient quantities.
30% of Iceland was forested when it was settled, mostly with birch. Oak was the preferred timber for building Norse halls in Scandinavia, but native birch had to serve as the primary framing materia…

History

Birch bark

Sod

Sod support along the eaves and verges

Modern turf roofs

See also

Notes