Does Synthetic Thatch Need Netting to Deter Birds and Rodents?

It is one of the first questions people ask about Endureed: if it looks like natural thatch, will it need netting like natural thatch?

No. Endureed engineered thatch doesn’t need netting to keep out birds and rodents, or to hold the roof together in wind. Here is why natural thatch needs it, and why engineered thatch doesn’t.

Why Natural Thatch Roofs Are Netted

On a natural thatched roof, netting is protection against animals that treat the roof as a resource.

• Birds pull out straw for nest material, or to reach grain left in the stalks.
• Rats, mice and squirrels burrow into the thatch, which is warm, dry and sheltered.
• Weak spots, especially ridges, take the most damage, so the ridge is often netted even when the rest of the roof is not. Long straw roofs are usually netted all over.

The netting itself is usually galvanized wire. Plastic netting is sometimes used, though lighter grades won’t stop squirrels. Copper netting is sometimes chosen because it is believed to slow lichen growth.

The Trouble With Netting

• It hides the thatch. A wire grid over the surface flattens the texture that made the roof worth having.
• It adds work. Netting has to be removed and refitted whenever a ridge is replaced or a section is repaired.
• It can slow firefighters. Construction guidance notes that netting can get in the way of crews tackling a thatch fire.

Why Endureed Doesn’t Need Netting

Nothing to eat, nothing to nest in. Endureed is engineered from polymers, not plant material, so it doesn’t attract or harbor birds, bats, insects or rodents. There is no grain, no soft fiber to pull away, and no rotting layer to burrow into.

Built as a fastened system. Endureed thatch is installed as shingles, each one fastened to the roof. In Premium profiles, the strands are mechanically locked into a metal binder strip.

Engineered for wind. Performance and Premium carry Florida Product Approval and are specified for hurricane-prone regions, with no netting needed for stability.

Proven Over 25 Years

In 2001, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge opened under 45,000 sq ft of Endureed engineered thatch, now known as Premium Capetown. Natural thatch had been ruled out because it was too flammable, too vulnerable to rot and pests, and too short-lived to insure. More than 25 years later, the roof is still in service, five years past its original 20-year warranty, without the rot or pest failures that ruled out natural thatch.

A Note on Birds

No roof can stop a bird from landing on it. What Endureed removes is the reason birds and rodents stay: food, nesting material and shelter inside the roof. An annual look at the roof and brushing off any debris is all the care it needs.

See It for Yourself

Explore Performance and Premium, request a sample, or contact our team with your questions.